In the present paper, we analyse the determinants of employment growth in V4 countries. While a standard approach relies on the parametric estimation of labour elasticity coefficients, we employ a novel approach based on structural decomposition analysis. This allows us to identify several determinants which mitigate the effects of economic growth on employment. We decompose the overall change in employment into the contribution of six factors: changes in labour productivity, changes in the import of intermediate products, changes in the structure of production, changes in the final demand structure by industries and by sectors, and a change in final demand volume. We show that besides the generally accepted influence of labour productivity growth on employment, other factors such as structural changes and changes in final demand played an important role in employment changes. These results shed some light on low labour elasticity in V4 countries and go beyond the simple labour productivity growth argument.
The present article provides first microlevel (indirect) empirical evidence on changes in entry barriers, the determinants of firm profitability as well as the nature of competition for a transition economy. We estimate size thresholds required to support different numbers of firms for several retail and professional service industries in a large number of geographic markets in Slovakia. The 3 time periods in the analysis (1995, 2001 and 2010) characterize different stages of the transition process. Specific emphasis is given to spatial spill-over effects between local markets. Estimation results obtained from a spatial ordered probit model suggest that entry barriers have declined considerably (except for restaurants) and that the intensity of competition has increased on average. We further find that demand spill-overs and/or the effects associated with a positive correlation in unobservable explanatory variables seem to outweigh negative spill-over effects caused by competitive forces between neighbouring cities and villages. The importance of these spatial spill-over effects differs across industries.
The paper examines why the pandemic recession hit the labour market in Slovakia differently from previous recessions. Traditionally, the unemployment rose sharply during previous economic recessions. Therefore, it seemed like a novelty when the unemployment rate rose only insignificantly in a pandemic recession. We find that both the demand and supply side of the labour market played their role in it. Labour demand has been affected differently compared to the past: Instead of the usual sharp increase in unemployment during a recession, the rate of utilization of workers’ time capacities fell, with expected impacts also on income differentiation. This is in line with the way more advanced European economies have responded to recessions before. In addition, a new element was also present on the labour force supply side. In previous recessions, the labour force supply had been rising; in the recent pandemic recession, it fell for the first time.
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