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That was then, this is now: skills and routinization in the 2000s

That was then, this is now: skills and routinization in the 2000s
That was then, this is now: skills and routinization in the 2000s
We analyze changes in the skill content of occupations in US four-digit manufacturing industries between 1999 and 2010. Following a ‘task-based’ approach, we elaborate a measure of non-routine skill intensity that captures the effects of industry exposure to both technology and international trade. The paper adds to previous literature by focusing on both the determinants of demand for non-routine skills and their effects on industry productivity and wages. The key finding is that import competition from low-wage countries has been a strong driver of demand for non-routine skills during the 2000s. Both technology and trade with low-wage countries are associated with mild cross-industry convergence in skill intensity, while trade with high- and medium-wage countries are at the root of persistent heterogeneity across occupational groups. We also find that higher non-routine skill intensity has had, at best, a modest effect on productivity and wages, except in high-skill occupations
0960-6491
847-866
Consoli, Davide
c776e815-2080-433e-8a51-0a6a43503285
Vona, Francesco
7139c180-ff50-419e-b7f2-f8091b92edc1
Rentocchini, Francesco
8ee609a8-8a3f-4a86-94be-5050f7d8c1cb
Consoli, Davide
c776e815-2080-433e-8a51-0a6a43503285
Vona, Francesco
7139c180-ff50-419e-b7f2-f8091b92edc1
Rentocchini, Francesco
8ee609a8-8a3f-4a86-94be-5050f7d8c1cb

Consoli, Davide, Vona, Francesco and Rentocchini, Francesco (2016) That was then, this is now: skills and routinization in the 2000s. Industrial and Corporate Change, 25 (5), 847-866. (doi:10.1093/icc/dtw030).

Record type: Article

Abstract

We analyze changes in the skill content of occupations in US four-digit manufacturing industries between 1999 and 2010. Following a ‘task-based’ approach, we elaborate a measure of non-routine skill intensity that captures the effects of industry exposure to both technology and international trade. The paper adds to previous literature by focusing on both the determinants of demand for non-routine skills and their effects on industry productivity and wages. The key finding is that import competition from low-wage countries has been a strong driver of demand for non-routine skills during the 2000s. Both technology and trade with low-wage countries are associated with mild cross-industry convergence in skill intensity, while trade with high- and medium-wage countries are at the root of persistent heterogeneity across occupational groups. We also find that higher non-routine skill intensity has had, at best, a modest effect on productivity and wages, except in high-skill occupations

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Accepted/In Press date: September 2015
e-pub ahead of print date: 22 August 2016
Published date: October 2016
Organisations: Centre for Innovation & Enterprise

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 380236
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/380236
ISSN: 0960-6491
PURE UUID: 3260d09c-848f-4828-adc9-dedecd18d67b

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Date deposited: 04 Sep 2015 14:57
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 05:20

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Contributors

Author: Davide Consoli
Author: Francesco Vona

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