经济理论与经济管理 ›› 2024, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (1): 121-136.

• 数理模型园地 • 上一篇    

新型基础设施影响劳动工资和工资差距的内在机制

  

  1. 南京大学经济学院
  • 出版日期:2024-01-16 发布日期:2024-02-26

The Internal Mechanism of How New Infrastructure Affects Labor's Wage and Wage Inequality

  1. School of Economics,Nanjing University
  • Online:2024-01-16 Published:2024-02-26

摘要: 本文从新型基础设施的产品偏向性出发,在一般均衡框架下探讨了新型基础设施影响劳动工资和工资差距的内在机制。研究发现,新型基础设施直接带来的效率提升可以促进各类劳动工资增长,但间接导致的要素重新配置可能产生不同的结果,总效应取决于资本与各类劳动之间的替代性以及技能型中间品与非技能型中间品之间的替代性。结合中国的实际情况,技能型产品偏向型的新型基础设施可能导致工资差距扩大,但可以带来劳动工资的“普惠性”增长。

关键词: 新型基础设施, 产品偏向性, 技能型劳动工资, 非技能型劳动工资, 工资差距

Abstract: This paper explores the underlying mechanisms of how new infrastructure affects labors wage and wage inequality,with a particular focus on the product bias of new infrastructure The paper starts by constructing a general equilibrium model that includes skilled intermediate goods,unskilled intermediate goods,and final products Skilled intermediate goods are produced using skilled labor and capital,while unskilled intermediate goods are produced using unskilled labor and capital Infrastructure plays a role by enhancing production efficiency The product bias of new infrastructure is reflected in its ability to significantly improve the production efficiency of skilled intermediate goods,reflecting the economic reality that new infrastructure can enhance the efficiency of digital products Additionally,this paper takes into account different production conditions based on a generalized production function
The impact channels through which new infrastructure influences labor wages can be divided into direct effect and indirect effect The direct effect is generated by the direct improvement in production efficiency due to new infrastructure,which simultaneously increases both types of labor wages Considering the skilled product bias of new infrastructure,the direct effect disproportionately increases the marginal productivity of skilled labor,thereby widening the wage gap The indirect effect arises from factor reallocation Due to the product bias,new infrastructure changes the relative wages between different types of labor,leading to relative price changes of intermediate goods This in turn alters the input proportions of intermediate goods in the production of final products,causing intersector capital flows and factor input adjustments This factor reallocation also has an impact on factor prices,depending on the substitutability between capital and different types of labor,as well as the substitutability between skilled and unskilled intermediate goods The results indicate that when the substitutability between capital and skilled labor is relatively low compared to the substitutability between intermediate goods,the indirect effect of new infrastructure has a positive impact on skilled wages Similarly,when the substitutability between capital and unskilled labor is relatively high compared to the substitutability between intermediate goods,the indirect effect of new infrastructure has a positive impact on unskilled wages This result suggests that,given a substitutability parameter between intermediate goods,if capital is less substitutable for skilled labor while unskilled labor is more substitutable for capital,the factor reallocation induced by new infrastructure can simultaneously increase both types of wages,providing a foundation for achieving “inclusive” growth of labor wages The results also show that changes in the wage gap depend solely on the substitutability between intermediate goods If there is a large elasticity of substitution between the two,new infrastructure with a skill product bias will widen the wage gap,while the opposite will narrow down the wage gap
Finally,this paper conducts a numerical analysis in the context of China's actual situation Based on the estimated results from the existing literature,the relationships between substitution elasticities in the overall economy of China generally satisfy the condition where the substitutability between capital and unskilled labor is greater than the substitutability between intermediate goods,which is greater than the substitutability between capital and skilled labor This suggests that under the current economic conditions,new infrastructure can bring about “inclusive” growth in labor wages,although its skill bias may widen the wage gap

Key words: new infrastructure, product bias, skilled wage, unskilled wage, wage inequality