Productivity and regulation in the construction sector: evidence for OECD countries

Labour productivity growth in the construction sector has been very weak in recent decades in most OECD countries. This paper addresses this issue based on a panel of 23 countries over the period 1995–2015. First, we use the Ackerberg, Caves, and Frazer (2015) method to propose a multifactor explanation for this lack of productivity growth: (i) average TFP growth is close to zero and even negative for most countries; (ii) average contributions to growth of capital and intermediate inputs are positive but weak, respectively of 0.05% and 0.90% per year, and much smaller than in the manufacturing sector over the same period (respectively of 0.40% and 3.10% per year). Then, we investigate whether reforms of regulations specific to the construction sector might boost productivity there. Using regulation indicators from the ‘Doing Business Report', we find a negative impact of these regulations on TFP, but not on the intensities of capital and intermediate inputs. Our results suggest that reducing the construction sector regulations might bolster productivity: a switch to the lightest regulations would lead to a long-term TFP increase of 6% on average.