Author(s)
Gueyon Kim

I study the trade-induced restructuring process using a novel measure of new work that captures the firm’s demand for jobs employing new knowledge, skills, and technologies. To construct measures of new work, I identify newly emerged job titles using word embedding models. Using both regional and firm-level analyses, I find that greater import exposure causes a persistent increase in new work in managerial occupations, but a decrease in new work in other occupations. Examining the activities performed in managerial new work, I find evidence of increased investments in post-production activities such as customer support, marketing, and sales. I further show that the trade-induced increase in managerial new work is driven by college-educated workers, thereby shedding light on the role of new work adoption in the distributional consequences of import shocks.

Publication Type
Working Paper
File Description
First version, March 2022
JEL Codes
J60: Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies: General
O00: Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth
F16: Trade and Labor Market Interactions
Keywords
restructuring
word embedding models
import shocks