Exporters, Engineers, and Blue-collar Workers
This article investigates differences in the composition of employment between exporting and nonexporting firms. In particular, it asks whether exporting firms hire more engineers relative to blue-collar workers than nonexporting firms. In a styliz...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the World Bank
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/838691565605297191/Exporters-Engineers-and-Blue-collar-Workers http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32238 |
| Summary: | This article investigates differences in
the composition of employment between exporting and
nonexporting firms. In particular, it asks whether exporting
firms hire more engineers relative to blue-collar workers
than nonexporting firms. In a stylized partial-equilibrium
model, firms produce goods of varying quality and exporters
tend to produce higher quality goods, which are intensive in
engineers relative to blue-collar workers. Firms are
heterogeneous and more productive firms become exporters and
have a higher demand for engineers. The article provides
causal evidence in support of these theories using the
Chilean Encuesta Nacional Industrial Anual (ENIA), an annual
census of manufacturing firms. The results from an
instrumental variable estimator suggest that Chilean
exporters indeed utilize a higher share of engineers over
blue-collar workers. |
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