International Knowledge Spillovers: The Benefits from Employing Immigrants
33 Pages Posted: 4 Mar 2015
Date Written: March 2, 2015
Abstract
This paper explores the role of immigrant employees for a firm’s capability to absorb international knowledge. Using matched employer-employee data from Denmark for the years 1996 to 2009, we are able to show that non-Danish employees from technological advanced countries contribute significantly to a firm’s economic output through their ability to access international knowledge. The empirical results suggest that the immigrants’ impact increases if they come from technological advanced countries, have a high educational level, and are employed in high-skilled positions.
Keywords: R&D Spillovers, Absorptive Capacity, Firm-Level Analysis, Foreign Workers, Immigrants
JEL Classification: D20, J82, L20, O30
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