Real unit labour costs in Eurozone countries: drivers and clusters

"We examine the trajectories of the real unit labour costs (RULCs) in a selection of Eurozone economies. Strong asymmetries in the convergence process of the RULCs and its components – real wages, capital intensity, and technology – are uncovered through decomposition and cluster analyses. In t...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ordóñez, Javier, Sala, Hector, Silva, José I.
Institution:ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
Format: TEXT
Language:English
Published: Bonn 2014
IZA
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19118087124919362699-Real-unit-labour-costs-in-euro.htm
_version_ 1771659893686665217
author Ordóñez, Javier
Sala, Hector
Silva, José I.
author_facet Ordóñez, Javier
Sala, Hector
Silva, José I.
collection Library items
description "We examine the trajectories of the real unit labour costs (RULCs) in a selection of Eurozone economies. Strong asymmetries in the convergence process of the RULCs and its components – real wages, capital intensity, and technology – are uncovered through decomposition and cluster analyses. In the last three decades, the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain) succeeded in reducing their RULCs by more than their northern partners. With the exception of Ireland, however, technological progress was weak; it was through capital intensification that periphery economies gained efficiency and competitiveness. Cluster heterogeneity, and lack of robustness in cluster composition, is a reflection of the difficulties in achieving real convergence and, by extension, nominal convergence. We conclude by outlining technology as the key convergence factor, and call for a renewed attention to real convergence indicators to strengthen the process of European integration."
format TEXT
geographic EU countries
id 19118087124919362699_e096b64be81e483a8cad07dc969b333d
institution ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
is_hierarchy_id 19118087124919362699_e096b64be81e483a8cad07dc969b333d
is_hierarchy_title Real unit labour costs in Eurozone countries: drivers and clusters
language English
physical 35 p.
Digital
publishDate 2014
publisher Bonn
IZA
spellingShingle Ordóñez, Javier
Sala, Hector
Silva, José I.
capital investment
labour cost
technology
wages
Real unit labour costs in Eurozone countries: drivers and clusters
thumbnail https://www.labourline.org/Image_prev.jpg?Archive=109174692735
title Real unit labour costs in Eurozone countries: drivers and clusters
topic capital investment
labour cost
technology
wages
url https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19118087124919362699-Real-unit-labour-costs-in-euro.htm