Power for progress: The impact of electricity on individual labor market outcomes
Jayes, Jonathan LU ; Molinder, Jakob LU and Enflo, Kerstin LU
(2024)
In CEPR Discussion papers
p.1-38
- Abstract
- When does technological change lead to inclusive prosperity? Research suggests that shared benefits from technological progress require concurrent expansions in education and support from pro-labor institutions. We contribute to the debate by studying electricity adoption in Sweden during the first decades of the 20th century. Exploiting that proximity to hydro-power plants shaped the electricity network independently of previous local conditions, we estimate the impact of electricity on individual labor market outcomes. We find that individuals in electricity-adopting parishes were more likely to hold electricity-related jobs, and earned on average higher incomes than comparable individuals. In terms of the distributional impact on the... (More)
- When does technological change lead to inclusive prosperity? Research suggests that shared benefits from technological progress require concurrent expansions in education and support from pro-labor institutions. We contribute to the debate by studying electricity adoption in Sweden during the first decades of the 20th century. Exploiting that proximity to hydro-power plants shaped the electricity network independently of previous local conditions, we estimate the impact of electricity on individual labor market outcomes. We find that individuals in electricity-adopting parishes were more likely to hold electricity-related jobs, and earned on average higher incomes than comparable individuals. In terms of the distributional impact on the local labor market, the income increase was more pronounced at the lower end of the economic spectrum and for those with just primary education, contributing to reduced inequality. These positive effects were observed in places with strong and weak unions alike, suggesting that electricity was an innately labor-supporting technology. To understand the impact of technology on labor markets, more attention should be paid to the feature of the technologies themselves. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/8f2601bd-0364-4375-95f7-1a1dd3b3b017
- author
- Jayes, Jonathan
LU
; Molinder, Jakob
LU
and Enflo, Kerstin
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-04-08
- type
- Working paper/Preprint
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- N14, N34, N74, O14, technological change, electrification, labor demand, infrastructure investments
- in
- CEPR Discussion papers
- issue
- DP18973
- pages
- 1 - 38
- publisher
- Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)
- ISSN
- 0265-8003
- project
- Praise the people or praise the place: How culture and specialization drive long-term regional growth
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 8f2601bd-0364-4375-95f7-1a1dd3b3b017
- alternative location
- https://cepr.org/publications/dp18973
- date added to LUP
- 2024-05-28 15:06:07
- date last changed
- 2024-05-28 16:30:05
@misc{8f2601bd-0364-4375-95f7-1a1dd3b3b017,
abstract = {{When does technological change lead to inclusive prosperity? Research suggests that shared benefits from technological progress require concurrent expansions in education and support from pro-labor institutions. We contribute to the debate by studying electricity adoption in Sweden during the first decades of the 20th century. Exploiting that proximity to hydro-power plants shaped the electricity network independently of previous local conditions, we estimate the impact of electricity on individual labor market outcomes. We find that individuals in electricity-adopting parishes were more likely to hold electricity-related jobs, and earned on average higher incomes than comparable individuals. In terms of the distributional impact on the local labor market, the income increase was more pronounced at the lower end of the economic spectrum and for those with just primary education, contributing to reduced inequality. These positive effects were observed in places with strong and weak unions alike, suggesting that electricity was an innately labor-supporting technology. To understand the impact of technology on labor markets, more attention should be paid to the feature of the technologies themselves.}},
author = {{Jayes, Jonathan and Molinder, Jakob and Enflo, Kerstin}},
issn = {{0265-8003}},
keywords = {{N14; N34; N74; O14; technological change; electrification; labor demand; infrastructure investments}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{04}},
note = {{Working Paper}},
number = {{DP18973}},
pages = {{1--38}},
publisher = {{Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)}},
series = {{CEPR Discussion papers}},
title = {{Power for progress: The impact of electricity on individual labor market outcomes}},
url = {{https://cepr.org/publications/dp18973}},
year = {{2024}},
}