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Growth, Automation and the Long Run Share of Labor

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  • Mookherjee, Dilip
  • Ray, Debraj

Abstract

We provide an argument for long-term automation and decline in the labor income share, driven by capital accumulation rather than technical progress or rising markups. We emphasize a fundamental asymmetry across physical and human capital. An individual can indefinitely replicate her claims on the former, but --- after a point --- her human endowment cannot be cloned and rescaled in the same way. Then ongoing capital accumulation gives rise to progressive automation, and the share of labor income converges to zero. The displacement of human labor is gradual, and real wages could rise indefinitely. The results extend to endogenous technical change.

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  • Mookherjee, Dilip & Ray, Debraj, 2020. "Growth, Automation and the Long Run Share of Labor," CEPR Discussion Papers 14286, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:14286
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    2. Dreger, Christian & Fourné, Marius & Holtemöller, Oliver, 2023. "Globalization, productivity growth, and labor compensation," IWH Discussion Papers 7/2022, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH), revised 2023.
    3. Yuki, Kazuhiro, 2012. "Mechanization, task assignment, and inequality," MPRA Paper 37754, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Wang, Linhui & Cao, Zhanglu & Dong, Zhiqing, 2023. "Are artificial intelligence dividends evenly distributed between profits and wages? Evidence from the private enterprise survey data in China," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 342-356.
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    7. Leone Julián & Cascio Jorge Lo, 2020. "Income gaps: Education and inequality," Economics and Business Review, Sciendo, vol. 6(4), pages 27-50, December.
    8. Yang, Jia & Pei, Yu & Qiang, Wei, 2024. "The impact of automation on human capital investment," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 62(PB).
    9. Cao, Sean & Jiang, Wei & Wang, Junbo & Yang, Baozhong, 2024. "From Man vs. Machine to Man + Machine: The art and AI of stock analyses," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    10. Antonio Cutanda, 2022. "The elasticity of substitution and labor-saving innovations in the Spanish regions," Estudios de Economia, University of Chile, Department of Economics, vol. 49(2 Year 20), pages 123-144, December.
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    JEL classification:

    • D33 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Factor Income Distribution
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity

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