I study the effect of foreign takeovers on the return to specific skills. Using administrative data on Hungarian workers and firms augmented with occupation level skill requirement measures, I find a positive and significant increase in the return to independent problem solving skills after a foreign acquisition, while the effect is smaller and less robust in the case of interpersonal skills, and I find no effect on the return to routine task intensity. These results are not driven by a subgroup of workers (such as managers) or by any special firm types (such as manufacturing firms), the pattern is general. I also show that the change in the valuation of independent problem solving skills can explain the increase in the white-collar wage premium. I argue that these findings are in line with the hypothesis that foreign investors decentralize the firm structure after the takeover.
Challenging Science and Innovation Policy Utrecht, 1-3 June 2022, hosted by Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University The “European Forum for Studies ... Read More »
Published in ‘Does EU Membership Facilitate Convergence? The Expierience of the EU’s Eastern Enlargement – Volume II’ Edited by Landesmann, Michael, Székely, Istvan P. ... Read More »
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