명목임금의 경직성과 고용변동성

Abstract

Using Korean Labor and Income Panel Study data, this paper estimates nominal wage rigidity in Korea by industry from 2005 to 2017 and evaluates the level of inefficiency of Korean labor market. And, after estimating employment volatility by industry using the Labor Force Survey at Establishments data for Korea, we combine the nominal wage rigidity and the employment volatility estimates and analyze the effect of nominal wage rigidity on employment volatility in Korea from 2011 to 2017. If the level of wage rigidity is high, it may be hard for the labor market to be in the equilibrium, and therefore, the market may have inefficiency. We find that the inefficiency of the labor market in Korea have increased from 2005 to 2017 and the industry of accommodation and food service activities has the highest level of inefficiency over the period. We also find that one-percent-point increase in wage rigidity increases employment volatility by 2.3-2.9 percent and the positive effect is bigger for workers with part-time and temporary jobs. The result implies that firms may adjust their labor costs by changing the number of casual workers, rather than permanent workers, when the labor market suffers from a high level of wage rigidity.