How Substitutable Are Workers? - Evidence from Worker Deaths

Simon Jäger and Jörg Heining
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Jörg Heining: Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, Germany ; IZA

No 202226, IAB-Discussion Paper from Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany]

Abstract: "We estimate how exogenous worker exits affect firms’ demand for incumbent workers and new hires. Drawing on administrative data from Germany, we analyze 34,000 unexpected worker deaths, which, on average, raise the remaining workers’ wages and retention probabilities. The average effect masks substantial heterogeneity: Coworkers in the same occupation as the deceased see positive wage effects; coworkers in other occupations experience wage decreases when a high-skilled or specialized worker dies. Our findings imply substantial replacement costs, which are larger in thin markets and when skills are specialized." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Keywords: Bundesrepublik Deutschland; IAB-Open-Access-Publikation; Auswirkungen; berufliche Spezialisierung; Berufsgruppe; Einarbeitungskosten; Einkommenseffekte; abhängig Beschäftigte; Integrierte Erwerbsbiografien; interner Arbeitsmarkt; Kleinbetrieb; Mitarbeiter; Personaleinstellung; Personalersatzbedarf; Sterblichkeit; Arbeitsplatzsicherheit; 1975-2011 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J00 J20 J30 J63 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 64 pages
Date: 2022-12-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-lma
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (23)

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https://doi.org/10.48720/IAB.DP.2226

Related works:
Working Paper: How Substitutable Are Workers? Evidence from Worker Deaths (2022)
Working Paper: How Substitutable Are Workers? Evidence from Worker Deaths (2022)
Working Paper: How Substitutable Are Workers? Evidence from Worker Deaths (2022)
Working Paper: How Substitutable Are Workers? Evidence from Worker Deaths (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:iab:iabdpa:202226

DOI: 10.48720/IAB.DP.2226

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