IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/pacfin/v87y2024ics0927538x24002282.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Linking labor with capital: How employee friendly treatment impact trade credit availability

Author

Listed:
  • Li, Yaoqin

Abstract

This study explores the value of employee friendly treatment from a signaling theory perspective by relating it to corporate trade credit. Theoretically, employee friendly treatment signals firms' high possibility of “will and able” to perform obligations, which strengthens firms' bargaining power in striving for trade credit. The empirical tests show a positive relationship between employee friendly treatment and trade credit availability. The positive effect of employee friendly treatment on trade credit is more prominent in firms with lower market power and firms located in areas with weaker legal enforcement, lower level industrialization and poorer high education popularity. Overall, the study establishes a link between labor and capital market, implying that firms' treatment to employees who are internal stakeholders can be a cue for outsider stakeholders such as suppliers to alter the provision of trade credit.

Suggested Citation

  • Li, Yaoqin, 2024. "Linking labor with capital: How employee friendly treatment impact trade credit availability," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pacfin:v:87:y:2024:i:c:s0927538x24002282
    DOI: 10.1016/j.pacfin.2024.102476
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0927538X24002282
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.pacfin.2024.102476?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Min Zhang & Lijun Ma & Jun Su & Wen Zhang, 2014. "Do Suppliers Applaud Corporate Social Performance?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(4), pages 543-557, June.
    2. Doukas, John A. & Zhang, Rongyao, 2021. "Managerial ability, corporate social culture, and M&As," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    3. Petersen, Mitchell A & Rajan, Raghuram G, 1997. "Trade Credit: Theories and Evidence," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 10(3), pages 661-691.
    4. Gonçalves, Adalto Barbaceia & Schiozer, Rafael F. & Sheng, Hsia Hua, 2018. "Trade credit and product market power during a financial crisis," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 308-323.
    5. Michael Spence, 2002. "Signaling in Retrospect and the Informational Structure of Markets," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(3), pages 434-459, June.
    6. Mike Burkart & Tore Ellingsen, 2004. "In-Kind Finance: A Theory of Trade Credit," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(3), pages 569-590, June.
    7. Carroll, Archie B., 1991. "The pyramid of corporate social responsibility: Toward the moral management of organizational stakeholders," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 39-48.
    8. Agle, Bradley R. & Donaldson, Thomas & Freeman, R. Edward & Jensen, Michael C. & Mitchell, Ronald K. & Wood, Donna J., 2008. "Dialogue: Toward Superior Stakeholder Theory," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 18(2), pages 153-190, April.
    9. Alexandre Garel & Arthur Petit-Romec, 2021. "Engaging Employees for the Long Run: Long-Term Investors and Employee-Related CSR," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(1), pages 35-63, November.
    10. Cull, Robert & Xu, Lixin Colin & Zhu, Tian, 2009. "Formal finance and trade credit during China's transition," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 173-192, April.
    11. Caroline Flammer & Jiao Luo, 2017. "Corporate social responsibility as an employee governance tool: Evidence from a quasi-experiment," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(2), pages 163-183, February.
    12. Cao, Zhangfan & Chen, Steven Xianglong & Lee, Edward, 2022. "Does business strategy influence interfirm financing? Evidence from trade credit," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 495-511.
    13. Maskus, Keith E. & Milani, Sahar & Neumann, Rebecca, 2019. "The impact of patent protection and financial development on industrial R&D," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 355-370.
    14. Mariassunta Giannetti & Mike Burkart & Tore Ellingsen, 2011. "What You Sell Is What You Lend? Explaining Trade Credit Contracts," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(4), pages 1261-1298.
    15. Ko, Eun-Jeong & McKelvie, Alexander, 2018. "Signaling for more money: The roles of founders' human capital and investor prominence in resource acquisition across different stages of firm development," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 438-454.
    16. Ben-Nasr, Hamdi & Ghouma, Hatem, 2018. "Employee welfare and stock price crash risk," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 700-725.
    17. Hongkang Xu & Jia Wu & Mai Dao, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility and trade credit," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 54(4), pages 1389-1416, May.
    18. Haemin Dennis Park & Pankaj C. Patel, 2015. "How Does Ambiguity Influence IPO Underpricing? The Role of the Signalling Environment," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(6), pages 796-818, September.
    19. Kai Li & Feng Mai & Rui Shen & Xinyan Yan, 2021. "Measuring Corporate Culture Using Machine Learning," NBER Chapters, in: Big Data: Long-Term Implications for Financial Markets and Firms, pages 3265-3315, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    20. Bae, Kee-Hong & Kang, Jun-Koo & Wang, Jin, 2011. "Employee treatment and firm leverage: A test of the stakeholder theory of capital structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(1), pages 130-153, April.
    21. Cuili Qian & Donal Crilly & Ke Wang & Zheng Wang, 2021. "Why Do Banks Favor Employee-Friendly Firms? A Stakeholder-Screening Perspective," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 32(3), pages 605-624, May.
    22. Marjo Siltaoja, 2006. "Value Priorities as Combining Core Factors Between CSR and Reputation – A Qualitative Study," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 68(1), pages 91-111, September.
    23. Fabbri, Daniela & Klapper, Leora F., 2016. "Bargaining power and trade credit," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 66-80.
    24. Haraguchi, Nobuya & Martorano, Bruno & Sanfilippo, Marco, 2019. "What factors drive successful industrialization? Evidence and implications for developing countries," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 266-276.
    25. Zhang, Yanlei & García Lara, Juan Manuel & Tribó, Josep A., 2020. "Unpacking the black box of trade credit to socially responsible customers," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    26. Chen, Yi-Chun & Hung, Mingyi & Wang, Yongxiang, 2018. "The effect of mandatory CSR disclosure on firm profitability and social externalities: Evidence from China," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(1), pages 169-190.
    27. Breuer, Wolfgang & Müller, Torbjörn & Rosenbach, David & Salzmann, Astrid, 2018. "Corporate social responsibility, investor protection, and cost of equity: A cross-country comparison," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 34-55.
    28. George A. Akerlof, 1970. "The Market for "Lemons": Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 84(3), pages 488-500.
    29. Cao, Zhangfan & Rees, William, 2020. "Do employee-friendly firms invest more efficiently? Evidence from labor investment efficiency," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    30. Alex Edmans & Itay Goldstein & Wei Jiang, 2015. "Feedback Effects, Asymmetric Trading, and the Limits to Arbitrage," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(12), pages 3766-3797, December.
    31. Joel Peress, 2010. "Product Market Competition, Insider Trading, and Stock Market Efficiency," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 65(1), pages 1-43, February.
    32. Will Drover & Matthew S. Wood & Andrew C. Corbett, 2018. "Toward a Cognitive View of Signalling Theory: Individual Attention and Signal Set Interpretation," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(2), pages 209-231, March.
    33. Olubunmi Faleye & Emery Trahan, 2011. "Labor-Friendly Corporate Practices: Is What is Good for Employees Good for Shareholders?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 101(1), pages 1-27, June.
    34. Dutordoir, Marie & Strong, Norman C. & Sun, Ping, 2018. "Corporate social responsibility and seasoned equity offerings," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 158-179.
    35. Fauver, Larry & McDonald, Michael B. & Taboada, Alvaro G., 2018. "Does it pay to treat employees well? International evidence on the value of employee-friendly culture," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 84-108.
    36. Glavas, Ante & Kelley, Ken, 2014. "The Effects of Perceived Corporate Social Responsibility on Employee Attitudes," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 24(2), pages 165-202, April.
    37. Spence, Michael, 1974. "Competitive and optimal responses to signals: An analysis of efficiency and distribution," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 296-332, March.
    38. Saeyoung Chang & Hoje Jo, 2019. "Employee‐friendly practices, product market competition and firm value," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(1-2), pages 200-224, January.
    39. Masako Darrough & Heedong Kim & Emanuel Zur, 2019. "The Impact of Corporate Welfare Policy on Firm-Level Productivity: Evidence from Unemployment Insurance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 159(3), pages 795-815, October.
    40. Datta, Sudip & Iskandar-Datta, Mai & Singh, Vivek, 2013. "Product market power, industry structure, and corporate earnings management," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 3273-3285.
    41. George A. Akerlof, 1982. "Labor Contracts as Partial Gift Exchange," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 97(4), pages 543-569.
    42. Edmans, Alex, 2011. "Does the stock market fully value intangibles? Employee satisfaction and equity prices," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(3), pages 621-640, September.
    43. Ghaly, Mohamed & Dang, Viet Anh & Stathopoulos, Konstantinos, 2015. "Cash holdings and employee welfare," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 53-70.
    44. S. Alex Yang & John R. Birge, 2018. "Trade Credit, Risk Sharing, and Inventory Financing Portfolios," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(8), pages 3667-3689, August.
    45. Jean-Noël Barrot, 2016. "Trade Credit and Industry Dynamics: Evidence from Trucking Firms," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 71(5), pages 1975-2016, October.
    46. Saeed, Abubakr, 2021. "The impact of employee friendly practices on dividend payments: Evidence from emerging economies," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 592-605.
    47. Nishant Dass & Jayant R. Kale & Vikram Nanda, 2015. "Trade Credit, Relationship-specific Investment, and Product Market Power," Review of Finance, European Finance Association, vol. 19(5), pages 1867-1923.
    48. Wu, Wenfeng & Firth, Michael & Rui, Oliver M., 2014. "Trust and the provision of trade credit," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 146-159.
    49. Bill Francis & Iftekhar Hasan & Liuling Liu & Haizhi Wang, 2019. "Employee Treatment and Contracting with Bank Lenders: An Instrumental Approach for Stakeholder Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(4), pages 1029-1046, September.
    50. Chen, Jie & Leung, Woon Sau & Evans, Kevin P., 2016. "Are employee-friendly workplaces conducive to innovation?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 61-79.
    51. Kai Li & Feng Mai & Rui Shen & Xinyan Yan, 2021. "Measuring Corporate Culture Using Machine Learning [Machine learning methods that economists should know about]," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 34(7), pages 3265-3315.
    52. A. P. Lerner, 1934. "The Concept of Monopoly and the Measurement of Monopoly Power," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 1(3), pages 157-175.
    53. Taj, Saud A., 2016. "Application of signaling theory in management research: Addressing major gaps in theory," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 338-348.
    54. Lee, Jaeho & Kim, Hakkon, 2016. "Do employee relation responsibility and culture matter for firm value? International evidence," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 40(PA), pages 191-209.
    55. Mingfeng Lin & Yong Liu & Siva Viswanathan, 2018. "Effectiveness of Reputation in Contracting for Customized Production: Evidence from Online Labor Markets," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(1), pages 345-359, January.
    56. Paul C. Godfrey & Craig B. Merrill & Jared M. Hansen, 2009. "The relationship between corporate social responsibility and shareholder value: an empirical test of the risk management hypothesis," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 425-445, April.
    57. Ge, Ying & Qiu, Jiaping, 2007. "Financial development, bank discrimination and trade credit," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 513-530, February.
    58. Michael Spence, 1973. "Job Market Signaling," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 87(3), pages 355-374.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vuong Thao Tran & Van Hoang Vu & Anh Le & Dinh Hoang Bach Phan, 2024. "Does it pay to treat employees well?: The case of informal finance," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(1-2), pages 473-510, January.
    2. Zhang, Yanlei & García Lara, Juan Manuel & Tribó, Josep A., 2020. "Unpacking the black box of trade credit to socially responsible customers," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    3. Saeed, Abubakr, 2021. "The impact of employee friendly practices on dividend payments: Evidence from emerging economies," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 592-605.
    4. Wang, Maochuan & Yan, Youliang, 2023. "Employee treatment and corporate investment efficiency: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    5. Li, Tongxia & Lu, Chun & Wang, Hui, 2023. "Stakeholder orientation and trade credit: Evidence from a natural experiment," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 15-34.
    6. Tarkom, Augustine & Yang, Lukai, 2024. "Presidential economic approval rating and trade credit," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    7. Cao, Zhangfan & Chen, Steven Xianglong & Lee, Edward, 2022. "Does business strategy influence interfirm financing? Evidence from trade credit," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 495-511.
    8. Cao, Zhangfan & Rees, William, 2020. "Do employee-friendly firms invest more efficiently? Evidence from labor investment efficiency," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    9. Jhang, Shih-Sian (Sherwin) & Ogden, Joseph P. & Suresh, Nallan C., 2019. "Operational and financial configurations contingent on market power status," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 91-109.
    10. Zhou, Zhongsheng & Li, Zhuo, 2023. "Corporate digital transformation and trade credit financing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    11. Stefano Filomeni & Michele Modina & Elena Tabacco, 2023. "Trade credit and firm investments: empirical evidence from Italian cooperative banks," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 1099-1141, April.
    12. Yaoqin Li, 2021. "Religious founders and employee welfare," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(5), pages 6037-6067, December.
    13. Jiang, Fuxiu & Xia, Xiaoxue & Zheng, Xiaojia, 2021. "Does controlling shareholders' share pledging raise suppliers' eyebrows?," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    14. Yuming Zhang & Han Liu & Shuang Li & Chao Xing, 2023. "The Digital Transformation Effect in Trade Credit Uptake: The Buyer Perspective," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(7), pages 2056-2078, May.
    15. Xin, Zhuoyao & Zhang, Zongyi & Xiang, Cheng, 2024. "Do suppliers value clients’ ESG profiles? Evidence from Chinese firms," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 241-258.
    16. D'Mello, Ranjan & Toscano, Francesca, 2020. "Economic policy uncertainty and short-term financing: The case of trade credit," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    17. Becker, Mary & Cardazzi, Alexander & McGurk, Zachary, 2022. "Employee satisfaction and stock returns during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(C).
    18. Shima Amini & Sofia Johan & Eilnaz Kashefi Pour & Abdulkadir Mohamed, 2023. "Employee Welfare, Social Capital, and IPO Firm Survival," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 47(6), pages 2174-2204, November.
    19. Chod, Jiri & Lyandres, Evgeny & Yang, S. Alex, 2019. "Trade credit and supplier competition," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(2), pages 484-505.
    20. Hasan, Mostafa Monzur & Habib, Ahsan, 2019. "Social capital and trade credit," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 158-174.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Employee friendly treatment; Trade credit; Signaling theory; Market power;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:pacfin:v:87:y:2024:i:c:s0927538x24002282. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/pacfin .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.