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The effect of intra- and inter-regional labour mobility on plant performance in Denmark: the significance of related labour inflows

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  • Bram Timmermans
  • Ron Boschma

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of labour mobility on plant performance in Denmark. Our study shows that the effect of labour mobility can only be assessed when one accounts for the type of skills that flow into the plant, and the degree to which these match the existing skills at the plant level. As expected, we found that the inflow of skills that are related to skills in the plant impacts positively on plant productivity growth, while inflows of skills that are similar to the plant skills have a negative effect. We used a sophisticated indicator of revealed relatedness that measures the degree of skill relatedness between sectors on the basis of the intensity of labour flows between sectors. Intra-regional mobility of skilled labour had a negative effect on plant performance, but the impacts of intra- and inter-regional mobility depended on the type of skills that flow into the plant.

Suggested Citation

  • Bram Timmermans & Ron Boschma, 2012. "The effect of intra- and inter-regional labour mobility on plant performance in Denmark: the significance of related labour inflows," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 1213, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Jun 2012.
    • Handle: RePEc:egu:wpaper:1213
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    labour mobility; revealed relatedness; plant performance; geographical proximity; related labour flows; Denmark;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

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