TY - JOUR

T1 - The productivity effect of temporary agency work

T2 - Evidence from German panel data

AU - Hirsch, Boris

AU - Mueller, Steffen

PY - 2012/8/1

Y1 - 2012/8/1

N2 - This study investigates the effect of temporary agency work on the user firm's productivity. We hypothesise that using temporary agency work to enhance numerical flexibility and to screen job candidates may increase productivity, whereas temporary workers' lower firm-specific human capital and spillover effects on the user's permanent employees may adversely affect productivity. Other than the sparse existing literature on this issue, we exploit a large panel data set and control for time-invariant and time-varying unobserved heterogeneity by using the system GMM estimator. We find a robust hump-shaped effect of the extent of temporary agency work on the user firm's productivity.

AB - This study investigates the effect of temporary agency work on the user firm's productivity. We hypothesise that using temporary agency work to enhance numerical flexibility and to screen job candidates may increase productivity, whereas temporary workers' lower firm-specific human capital and spillover effects on the user's permanent employees may adversely affect productivity. Other than the sparse existing literature on this issue, we exploit a large panel data set and control for time-invariant and time-varying unobserved heterogeneity by using the system GMM estimator. We find a robust hump-shaped effect of the extent of temporary agency work on the user firm's productivity.

KW - Economics

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84865300091&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1111/j.1468-0297.2012.02536.x

DO - 10.1111/j.1468-0297.2012.02536.x

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 122

SP - F216-F235

JO - The Economic Journal

JF - The Economic Journal

SN - 0013-0133

IS - 562

ER -