Localized Technological Change and Efficiency Wages across European Regional Labour Markets

Internal labour markets and industrial relations in Continental Europe are characterized by substantial rigidity of employed labour engendered by the tight conditions of regional labour markets. This rigidity affects both the rate and the direction of technological change. The increase of wages induces the localized introduction of biased technological change with clear effects on productivity levels. The empirical evidence across a sample of European regions confirms the significant role of the changes in wages both on the increase of the output elasticity of labour and on multifactor productivity.