Investing in Knowledge: On the Trade-Off between R&D, ICT, Skills and Migration

This paper deals with the complementarity between skills and knowledge by investigating particularly tacit knowledge flows between countries and regions. The main findings are threefold. First, there seems to exist a trade-off between acquiring knowledge through performing and putting effort in R&D and through investing into access to the public knowledge basin. Secondly, migration of high-skilled labour from South to North appears, as a result of the introduction and rapid evolution of ICT, no longer a dominant trend. Finally, the observed trade-off goes hand in hand with the accumulation and formation of tacit knowledge.research and development ;

Insights in the Job, Skill and Wage Structure of the Netherlands: 1986-98

The increase in the supply of relatively high-skilled workers since the 1960''s, recently accompanied by rapid technical change as a result of the introduction of new ICT’s, has increased the demand for high-skilled labour dramatically. In many countries this has led to a dramatic increase in the skilled workers wage premium. However, in the Netherlands wage dispersion is hardly observed. This paper shows why wages have been relatively stable in the Netherlands. Empirical analysis of a unique data set reveals that the increase in the demand for skills has been captured by a more efficient assignment of workers to jobs, not by increasing wage premiums.labour economics ;

Cybertax

Abstract not availableeconomics of technology ;

Globalization, Tax Erosion and the Internet

Electronic commerce and globalization are, and will continue to be a challenge to tax collectors throughout the world. Globalization makes the cross-border movements in goods, capital and labour less transparent. Companies and individuals are therefore able to exploit tax differences between countries. The Internet eliminates borders between countries and furthermore makes businesses virtually invisible. At the consumer end, E-commerce makes the tracing of transactions and thus the taxing of goods and services sold and distributed via the Internet almost impossible. As a result, state and national governments’ tax bases are, or are at risk of, being eroded.public economics ;

How do social capital and government support affect innovation and growth? Evidence from the EU regional support programmes

This research investigates the role of social capital and government intervention in explaining the differences of innovation output and economic growth for regions of the European Union from 1990-2002. Using several measures of social capital and innovation, and the European Union’s Objective 1, 2 and 5b figures for EU regional support, the estimates suggest that EU funding is not significantly contributing to economic outcomes, while social capital is. Investigation of a possible complementary relationship between social capital and government support reveals that regions with higher levels of social capital are more likely to effectively gain from EU regional support programmes. This result implies that aside from the benefits associated with the direct effect of social capital on economic outcomes, social capital appears to be a critical prerequisite for the effective implementation of government programmes. From a policy perspective, it appears to be important to stimulate education to foster human capital formation. When combined, human capital and social capital are likely to yield stronger effects for effective policies which increase economic outcomes.Social capital, Innovation, Economic growth, European Union, Structural funds

Overeducation, Job Competition and Unemployment

The changing wage and employment structure in some OECD countries has beenattributed to increased levels of education and technical change in favour of skilledworkers. However, in the Netherlands and some other OECD countries the wages ofskilled workers did not rise, whereas investment in skills rose dramatically. This paperoffers a theory which is able to explain the dramatic increase in the level of education andskills without rising wages since the early 1980s. In this respect, we integrate the supplyside framework (human capital investments) and the demand side (containingendogenous skill upgrading as a result of job competition and screening) in a generalequilibrium model. In this way we provide a theory for the empirical observation ofrising unemployment levels among unskilled workers and rising employment levels ofskilled workers with relatively stable wages.economics of technology ;

Do We Need Computer Skills to Use a Computer? Evidence from Britain

Using data from the 1997 Skills Survey of the Employed British Workforce, we examine the returns to computer skills in Britain. Many researchers, using information on computer use, have concluded that wage differentials between computer users and non-users might, among others, be due to differences in the embodiment of computer skills. Using unique information on the importance, level of sophistication and effectiveness of computer use, we show that computer skills do not yield significant labour market returns for most types of use. Examining the returns to computer skills at different levels of sophistication of use, yields estimates suggesting returns to computer skills at the highest level of sophistication of use only.education, training and the labour market;

How computerizaton changes the UK Labour Market: The Facts viewed from a new Perspective

The digitisation of the world as a result of the introduction of computers, chips, and ICT, has undoubtedly been the most important technological development of the past few decades. The fact that more and more workers use computers has led to the conclusion that computer skills are becoming a key to social success. The aim of this paper is to contribute to the discussion of the effects of computerization on work. Our main conclusions are that the fear of a digital split in society appears unjustified. Although computers initially find their way primarily to the higher educated, practically all workers eventually end up working with computers. Absence of computer skills probably plays no role during this process of computerization. This does not mean, however, that there is no need for policies to optimise the economic potential of computers and ICT in general. Firstly, a properly developed infrastructure may be of importance for a rapid diffusion of the possibilities offered by ICT. This applies not only to the physical networks, but also to the availability of software and information. In addition, it may be expected that the educational requirements for workers will increase across the board and there will be changes in the knowledge and skills that people need to have. These are not primarily computer skills, but concern a much wider shift in the importance of various skills. Adjusting adequately to these changes requires reliable data. What is being measured and how the measurements are taken, will need to change considerably.education, training and the labour market;

What happens when agent T gets a computer?

During the last decade a great many authors have shown that computers have a large impact on skill demand, production processes, and the organization and intensity of work. Analyses have indicated that the rates of change of these variables have been the largest in the more computer-intensive sectors. Empirical findings, however, suggest that the effects of computers on the labor market are complicated and difficult to trace. This paper offers a simple model to explain how computers have changed the labor market. The model demonstrates that wage differentials between computer users and other workers are consistent with the observation that computers are first introduced in high-wage jobs because of cost efficiency. It also shows that neither computer skills nor complementary skills are needed to explain skill upgrading, changes in product characteristics, and the organization and intensity of work. Finally, it is shown that these findings shed a different light on the way computers have changed the labor market and on the changes to be expected following the further diffusion of computers.education, training and the labour market;

Skill-biased technical change: On technology and wages in the Netherlands

This paper investigates the shift in demand away from low-skilled and towards high-skilled labour in the Netherlands over the 1990s. Making the distinction between the effects of technical change on job type and job level, the conclusion is that skill-biased technical change based on job level is the chief cause for this shift.labour economics ;