IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/inm/ormnsc/v67y2021i6p3468-3491.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Business Groups and Employment

Author

Listed:
  • Mara Faccio

    (Krannert School of Management, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907; Asian Bureau of Finance and Economics Research, National University of Singapore Business School, Singapore 117592; European Corporate Governance Institute, Royal Academies of Belgium, Palace of the Academies, 1000 Brussels, Belgium; National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138)

  • William J. O’Brien

    (School of Business Administration, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60612)

Abstract

Using a newly assembled 50-country firm-level database spanning 19 years, we document a bright side for employees of business group–affiliated firms: less pronounced fluctuations in employment than unaffiliated firms in response to macroeconomic shocks. The results are robust to a variety of tests designed to mitigate endogeneity concerns, including propensity score matching and comparisons of successful and failed group integrations, and are present in both booms and recessions. Our results are most consistent with group internal labor markets rather than several alternative explanations (internal capital markets, a lower overall sensitivity to shocks in group firms, or agency problems).

Suggested Citation

  • Mara Faccio & William J. O’Brien, 2021. "Business Groups and Employment," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(6), pages 3468-3491, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:67:y:2021:i:6:p:3468-3491
    DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.2020.3616
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2020.3616
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1287/mnsc.2020.3616?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
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chinn, Menzie D. & Ito, Hiro, 2006. "What matters for financial development? Capital controls, institutions, and interactions," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 163-192, October.
    2. Randall Morck, 2005. "How to Eliminate Pyramidal Business Groups: The Double Taxation of Intercorporate Dividends and Other Incisive Uses of Tax Policy," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 19, pages 135-179, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Boutin, Xavier & Cestone, Giacinta & Fumagalli, Chiara & Pica, Giovanni & Serrano-Velarde, Nicolas, 2013. "The deep-pocket effect of internal capital markets," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(1), pages 122-145.
    4. Geoffrey Tate & Liu Yang, 2015. "The Bright Side of Corporate Diversification: Evidence from Internal Labor Markets," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 28(8), pages 2203-2249.
    5. Giacinta Cestone & Chiara Fumagalli & Francis Kramaz & Giovanni Pica, 2015. "Insurance Between Firms: The Role of Internal Labor Markets," CSEF Working Papers 386, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy, revised 22 Jan 2020.
    6. Ronald W. Masulis & Peter Kien Pham & Jason Zein, 2011. "Family Business Groups around the World: Financing Advantages, Control Motivations, and Organizational Choices," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 24(11), pages 3556-3600.
    7. Sharon Belenzon & Ulya Tsolmon, 2016. "Market frictions and the competitive advantage of internal labor markets," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(7), pages 1280-1303, July.
    8. Blatter, Marc & Muehlemann, Samuel & Schenker, Samuel, 2012. "The costs of hiring skilled workers," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 20-35.
    9. Cheung, Yan-Leung & Rau, P. Raghavendra & Stouraitis, Aris, 2006. "Tunneling, propping, and expropriation: evidence from connected party transactions in Hong Kong," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(2), pages 343-386, November.
    10. Francis Kramarz & Marie-Laure Michaud, 2002. "The Shape of Hiring and Separation Costs," Working Papers 2002-38, Center for Research in Economics and Statistics.
    11. Jordan Siegel & Prithwiraj Choudhury, 2012. "A Reexamination of Tunneling and Business Groups: New Data and New Methods," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 25(6), pages 1763-1798.
    12. Bruce C. Greenwald, 1986. "Adverse Selection in the Labour Market," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 53(3), pages 325-347.
    13. Tarun Khanna & Yishay Yafeh, 2007. "Business Groups in Emerging Markets: Paragons or Parasites?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 45(2), pages 331-372, June.
    14. Mueller, Holger & Giroud, Xavier, 2015. "Capital and Labor Reallocation within Firms," CEPR Discussion Papers 10360, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    15. Almeida, Heitor & Park, Sang Yong & Subrahmanyam, Marti G. & Wolfenzon, Daniel, 2011. "The structure and formation of business groups: Evidence from Korean chaebols," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(2), pages 447-475, February.
    16. Nan Jia & Jing Shi & Yongxiang Wang, 2013. "Coinsurance Within Business Groups: Evidence from Related Party Transactions in an Emerging Market," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 59(10), pages 2295-2313, October.
    17. Claessens, Stijn & Djankov, Simeon & Lang, Larry H. P., 2000. "The separation of ownership and control in East Asian Corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 81-112.
    18. Tarun Khanna & Yishay Yafeh, 2005. "Business Groups and Risk Sharing around the World," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 78(1), pages 301-340, January.
    19. Marianne Bertrand & Paras Mehta & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2002. "Ferreting out Tunneling: An Application to Indian Business Groups," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 117(1), pages 121-148.
    20. Jae‐Seung Baek & Jun‐Koo Kang & Inmoo Lee, 2006. "Business Groups and Tunneling: Evidence from Private Securities Offerings by Korean Chaebols," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 61(5), pages 2415-2449, October.
    21. Takeo Hoshi & Anil Kashyap & David Scharfstein, 1991. "Corporate Structure, Liquidity, and Investment: Evidence from Japanese Industrial Groups," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 106(1), pages 33-60.
    22. Toni M. Whited & Guojun Wu, 2006. "Financial Constraints Risk," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 19(2), pages 531-559.
    23. Xavier Giroud & Holger M. Mueller, 2015. "Capital and Labor Reallocation within Firms," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 70(4), pages 1767-1804, August.
    24. Ball, Laurence & Jalles, João Tovar & Loungani, Prakash, 2015. "Do forecasters believe in Okun’s Law? An assessment of unemployment and output forecasts," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 176-184.
    25. Charles J. Hadlock & Joshua R. Pierce, 2010. "New Evidence on Measuring Financial Constraints: Moving Beyond the KZ Index," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 23(5), pages 1909-1940.
    26. Abowd, John M. & Kramarz, Francis, 2003. "The costs of hiring and separations," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(5), pages 499-530, October.
    27. Heitor Almeida & Chang‐Soo Kim & Hwanki Brian Kim, 2015. "Internal Capital Markets in Business Groups: Evidence from the Asian Financial Crisis," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 70(6), pages 2539-2586, December.
    28. Kee‐Hong Bae & Jun‐Koo Kang & Jin‐Mo Kim, 2002. "Tunneling or Value Added? Evidence from Mergers by Korean Business Groups," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(6), pages 2695-2740, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Bao, Hengmiao & Yang, Shijie, 2024. "Is there life after product quality failures? Evidence from employment decisions," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 218(C), pages 325-355.
    2. Pablo Doucet & Ignacio Requejo & Isabel Suárez-González, 2024. "Business groups’ internal labour markets and SME labour productivity," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 707-725, February.

    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. Viswanathan Nagarajan & Pitabas Mohanty & Apalak Khatua, 2023. "Financing effects of corporate diversification: A review," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 17(7), pages 2555-2585, October.
    2. Giacinta Cestone & Chiara Fumagalli & Francis Kramarz & Giovanni Pica, 2024. "Exploiting Growth Opportunities: The Role of Internal Labour Markets," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 91(5), pages 2676-2716.
    3. Byun, Hae-Young & Choi, Sunhwa & Hwang, Lee-Seok & Kim, Robert G., 2013. "Business group affiliation, ownership structure, and the cost of debt," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 23(C), pages 311-331.
    4. Carney, Michael & Estrin, Saul & Van Essen, Marc & Shapiro, Daniel, 2017. "Business groups reconsidered: beyond paragons and parasites," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 87340, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Buchuk, David & Larrain, Borja & Muñoz, Francisco & Urzúa I., Francisco, 2014. "The internal capital markets of business groups: Evidence from intra-group loans," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(2), pages 190-212.
    6. Luis Alfonso Dau & Randall Morck & Bernard Yin Yeung, 2021. "Business groups and the study of international business: A Coasean synthesis and extension," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(2), pages 161-211, March.
    7. Giacinta Cestone & Chiara Fumagalli & Francis Kramaz & Giovanni Pica, 2015. "Insurance Between Firms: The Role of Internal Labor Markets," CSEF Working Papers 386, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy, revised 22 Jan 2020.
    8. Lee, Kyounghun & Oh, Frederick Dongchuhl & Shin, Donglim & Yoon, Heejin, 2023. "Internal labor markets and corporate innovation: Evidence from Korean chaebols," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 146-162.
    9. Richard W. Carney & Travers Barclay Child, 2015. "Business Networks and Crisis Performance: Professional, Political, and Family Ties," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 15-135/V, Tinbergen Institute, revised 20 Feb 2015.
    10. Faccio, Mara & Morck, Randall & Deniz Yavuz, M., 2021. "Business groups and the incorporation of firm-specific shocks into stock prices," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 139(3), pages 852-871.
    11. Cheng, Liubing & Chen, Yanyan & Zhang, Yan, 2022. "Business groups and corporate bond costs: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    12. Joseph P. H. Fan & Li Jin & Guojian Zheng, 2016. "Revisiting the Bright and Dark Sides of Capital Flows in Business Groups," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 134(4), pages 509-528, April.
    13. Liu, Yunxiao & Kim, Woochan & Sung, Taeyoon, 2021. "Investment efficiency of firms outside the business group," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    14. Bena, Jan & Ortiz-Molina, Hernán, 2013. "Pyramidal ownership and the creation of new firms," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(3), pages 798-821.
    15. Nan Jia & Jing Shi & Yongxiang Wang, 2013. "Coinsurance Within Business Groups: Evidence from Related Party Transactions in an Emerging Market," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 59(10), pages 2295-2313, October.
    16. Beaver, William H & Cascino, Stefano & Correia, Maria & McNichols, Maureen F., 2023. "Bankruptcy in groups," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 118590, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    17. Cheung, Yan-Leung & Rau, P. Raghavendra & Stouraitis, Aris & Tan, Weiqiang, 2021. "Does the market understand the ex ante risk of expropriation by controlling shareholders?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    18. Beaver, William & Cascino, Stefano & Correia, Maria & McNichols, Maureen, 2018. "Bankruptcy in groups," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 118925, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    19. Huneeus, Federico & Larrain, Borja & Larrain, Mauricio & Prem, Mounu, 2021. "The internal labor markets of business groups," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    20. Ronald W. Masulis & Peter K. Pham & Jason Zein, 2020. "Family Business Group Expansion Through IPOs: The Role of Internal Capital Markets in Financing Growth While Preserving Control," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(11), pages 5191-5215, November.

    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:inm:ormnsc:v:67:y:2021:i:6:p:3468-3491. 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: Chris Asher (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/inforea.html .

    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.