New technologies, organisation and age: firm-level evidence

Aubert, Patrick; Caroli, Eve; Roger, Muriel

Aubert, Patrick; Caroli, Eve; Roger, Muriel (2006), New technologies, organisation and age: firm-level evidence, The Economic Journal, 116, 509, p. 73-93. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0297.2006.01065.x

Type

Article accepté pour publication ou publié

Date

2006

Journal name

The Economic Journal

Volume

116

Number

509

Publisher

Macmillan

Pages

73-93

Abstract (EN)

We investigate the relationships between new technologies, innovative workplace practices and the age structure of the workforce in a sample of French firms. We find evidence that the wage-bill share of older workers is lower in innovative firms and that the opposite holds for younger workers. This age bias affects both men and women. It is also evidenced within occupational groups. More detailed analysis of employment inflows and outflows shows that new technologies essentially affect older workers through reduced hiring opportunities. In contrast, organisational innovations mainly affect their probability of exit, which decreases much less than for younger workers following reorganisation.

Subjects / Keywords

Young workers; Corporate reorganizations; Older people; Work environment; France

JEL

J21 - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
O33 - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
J24 - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity