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An Analysis of Corona Pandemic-related Productivity Growth in Germany: Sectoral Aspects, Work-From-Home Perspectives and Digitalization Intensity

Author

Listed:
  • Alina Wilke

    (Europäisches Institut für Internationale Wirtschaftsbeziehungen (EIIW))

  • Paul J. J. Welfens

    (Europäisches Institut für Internationale Wirtschaftsbeziehungen (EIIW))

Abstract

This paper considers labor productivity growth under the Corona pandemic setting in Germany in 2020 and the first two quarters of 2021 and thus is a complementary analysis to a study of Vries et al. (2021) which covers the US, France and the UK. Data from 63 industries is used within a shift-share analysis to analyze pure within-productivity growth in Germany, abstracting from reallocations of hours worked. Following the original approach of Vries et al. (2021), three taxonomies are applied to categorize industry-level data regarding similar types of activity (sector affiliation), working-from-home (WFH) intensity and digital intensity. We find that aggregate productivity growth in Germany was slightly negative in 2020, but saw a rather large positive growth in the second quarter of 2021. This is still true when looking at the pure-within industry productivity growth. The much-discussed hospitality and culture sector underwent only small within-productivity growth reductions. Most changes of within-productivity growth during 2020 and 2021 can be observed in the manufacturing sector. Even though high WFH industries performed better during 2020 in terms of within-industry productivity growth, the difference to medium- and low-WFH industries was very small. In the second quarter of 2021 both medium and low WFH industries outperformed high WFH industries. Above average digital-intensive industries showed higher within-industry productivity growth than below average digital-intensive industries at the beginning of the pandemic. However, below average digital-intensive industries caught up during the first two quarters of 2021. For almost all industries, rather large within-industry productivity growth can be observed in the second quarter of 2021.

Suggested Citation

  • Alina Wilke & Paul J. J. Welfens, 2022. "An Analysis of Corona Pandemic-related Productivity Growth in Germany: Sectoral Aspects, Work-From-Home Perspectives and Digitalization Intensity," EIIW Discussion paper disbei313, Universitätsbibliothek Wuppertal, University Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:bwu:eiiwdp:disbei313
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Productivity; Covid-19 pandemic; labor reallocation; digitalization; work-from-home; shift-share analysis;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • E23 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Production
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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