Labor-intensive Industries Research Articles

Uncertainty shock and digital transformation: evidence from COVID-19

ABSTRACT This paper examines the impact of uncertainty shocks, exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, on enterprise digital transformation using a difference-in-differences (DID) approach with data from Chinese A-share listed companies. Our findings reveal that such shocks accelerate the process of digital transformation, a conclusion that withstands parallel trend tests and multiple robustness checks. Heterogeneity analyses show that knowledge-intensive and service-oriented industries generally exhibit stronger trends in digital transformation, while traditional labour-intensive industries face more challenges. Further mechanism analyses identify technology upgrading effect, cost effect, and peer effect as the primary channels through which uncertainty shocks influence enterprise digital transformation. This study contributes to the existing literature by providing comprehensive empirical evidence on how uncertainty shocks drive digital transformation across various industries, extending research on coping strategies for such shocks and broadening our understanding of the drivers behind enterprise digital transformation.

Robot adoption and firm export: Evidence from China

Whether the robot adoption can lead to a new competitive advantage in international trade has become an urgent problem for firms that export from China. Using matching data from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) Database and the China Industrial Enterprises Database and China Customs Database for 2011 to 2013, this study examines the impact of robot adoption on firm export and its mechanism. We find that the robot adoption significantly promotes firm export, including the value and intensity of firm export, mainly owing to an improvement in firm productivity. This effect remains robust after using instrumental variable to account for endogenous factors and replacing core explanatory variables. Heterogeneity analysis shows that, first, robot adoption plays a greater role in promoting firm export by foreign enterprises and private enterprises than by state-owned enterprises. Second, robot adoption has a stronger effect on labor-intensive industries than on non-labor-intensive industries. Third, with the increase of firm scale, innovation and human capital, the promoting effect of robot adoption on firm export increases. Our research provides empirical evidence on the positive impact of robot adoption on firm export and sheds light on how to maintain the competitiveness of manufacturing firms in China.

Industrial robots and export product quality: evidence from China

ABSTRACT In this study, we first construct a theoretical framework for a heterogeneous product quality model to analyse how robot adoption affects international trade through quality upgrading. Then, we use micro-level data from Chinese Customs Trade Statistics and the Annual Survey of Industrial Firms to examine the heterogeneous effects of industrial robots on export product quality. Both theoretical analysis and empirical research show that industrial robots promote export product quality upgrading through effectively improving firms’ total factor productivity and reducing marginal production costs. Moreover, industrial robots have different effects on firms based on product types, ownership properties, and factor intensity. The results show that the effects of industrial robots on export product quality are stronger for homogeneous products, foreign and private enterprises for homogeneous products, foreign and private enterprises, and labour-intensive industries. These findings align with the literature on the wide-ranging impact of industrial robots, while offering a distinct opportunity to empirically investigate enterprises’ diverse responses to a uniform general-purpose technology. This study also diverges from previous research by examining a previously overlooked dimension: productivity-boosting and marginal cost-reducing effects.

Research on Ecological Restoration Strategies for Abandoned Mines Based on Ecology-Oriented Development

The ecological restoration of abandoned mines poses a significant challenge within China’s broader efforts toward the protection and restoration of the nation’s ecosystems. Based on the ecology-oriented development (EOD) model, a differential game framework for the ecological restoration of abandoned mines was constructed in this study, involving both government and corporate entities as players. Our analysis focused on various factors, including investment levels in ecological restoration quality, the quality of ecological restoration itself, investment levels in environmentally sensitive industry development, the quality of environmentally sensitive industries, environmentally sensitive product pricing strategies, and profit dynamics for both players across four distinct modes. Our findings reveal several key insights. First, extending the government’s concession period incentivizes enterprises to increase investment in both the quality of ecological restoration of abandoned mines and the development of environmentally sensitive industries. Second, the government should prefer the cooperative mode to introduce social capital for the ecology-oriented development of abandoned mines. Third, in noncooperative mode, for technology-intensive industries, the government’s industrial support policy is more mutually beneficial; conversely, for labor-intensive industries, the ecological restoration compensation policy yields higher mutual gains. Lastly, differentiated incentive policies implemented by the government across various modes prompt the input of enterprises in ecological restoration quality and environmentally sensitive industry development. Based on these findings, we offer specific policy recommendations to guide governmental efforts in promoting EOD for the ecological restoration of abandoned mines. Funding: This work was supported by the Sichuan Office of Philosophy and Social Science [Grant SC22C004] and the National Social Science Fund of China [Grant 22XKS015].

The effects of compensation, organizational commitment, and job satisfaction on work productivity: Evidence from readymade garments industry in an emerging economy

Despite noticeable research interest, the labor-intensive Readymade Garments (RMG) industry has rarely been studied from the perspective of workers’ productivity. Additionally, previous studies already generalized that rewards and organizational commitment lead to employee productivity. However, extant research focused on the RMG industry of Bangladesh, which consists of a different socio-cultural, economic, and political environment, as well as profusion dependency on unskilled labor with an abundance supply of it, hardly considered job satisfaction as a factor that may affect the dynamics of compensations or rewards, commitment, and employee productivity. To address this research gap, this study analyzes the spillover effect of compensation, organizational commitment, and job satisfaction on work productivity in Bangladesh’s readymade garments (RMG) industry. Besides, it delves into the analysis of job satisfaction as a mediator among these relationships. We examined the proposed model by analysing cross-sectional survey data from 475 respondents using the partial least squares-structural equation model in Smart PLS 4.0. The findings show that higher compensation and organizational commitment levels lead to higher levels of job satisfaction, leading to greater productivity. This research also discovered that job satisfaction is a mediator between compensation and productivity and commitment and productivity, respectively. Results further show that increased organizational commitment and competitive wages are the two keyways to boost job satisfaction and productivity in the RMG industry. Relying on the findings, this study outlines pathways for organizational policymakers to improve employee productivity in the labor-intensive industry in developing countries.

Network spillover effects and path analysis of shocks - An empirical study in China

The study of interconnections between various sectors of the national economy is crucial for understanding the pattern and pace of macroeconomic growth. This paper analyzes the macroeconomic impact of shocks occurring in specific sectors through both supply and demand perspectives and proposes a combination of bottom-up and top-down structural path analysis approaches to trace the transmission path of network spillover effects, where shocks in this paper refer to microeconomic productivity changes and network spillover is defined as the effect on GDP due to the propagation of shocks to other sectors. The research results found that the total spillover effect of primary and secondary industry sectors in China shows an inverted U-shape, and the total spillover effect of tertiary industry sectors shows an upward trend. A large total spillover effect of a sector does not mean that both upward and downward spillover effects are large; for example, the construction industry has high upward spillover effects and low downward spillover effects. The spillover effect of each production layer decreases as the path lengthens, and the distribution is L-shaped. In addition, by identifying the critical paths of spillover effects, we find that the spillover effects of labor-intensive industries, such as wholesale and retail, are decreasing year by year, and the spillover effects of the paths related to the information technology industry are gradually occupying an important position.

Determinants of location changes in the clothing industry in Poland

Abstract The clothing industry is often perceived, particularly in the European context, as a declining, traditional, labour-intensive industry. Nonetheless, in recent years in Poland, after over three decades of steady shrinkage, though the average scale of operations has continued to decline, the number of firms in the sector has been much more stable. In their analysis of the locations of apparel producers on the national level, the authors point to the changing geography of the sector in terms of its increased or diminishing relative presence in some areas. The links between location tendencies among firms in the clothing industry and other fashion-related institutions and initiatives are noted, as are new firms in the creative sector. The spatial patterns observed point to the ability of the resized sector to leverage emerging market opportunities and upgrade selectively, and to its broader evolution from a traditional towards a creative industry.

TOGAF Utilization for Revolutionizing Enterprise Architecture at Labor Intensive Industry

Labor-intensive industries face challenges in optimizing information systems and technology. Disconnected business processes cause scattered data and poor application integration. A structured approach is required to design an enterprise architecture aligning business and IT strategies. This study explores TOGAF implementation in a labor-intensive business in Jakarta, focusing on creating a more efficient architecture. The research provides design recommendations, including human resource management portal enhancements. Using TOGAF and UML, the study successfully created an enterprise architecture addressing business, application, data, and technology needs, improving departmental integration, overall business performance, and service delivery. It effectively bridges IT and business strategies.

The Impact of Minimum Wage System on Low-Income Groups

The minimum wage system sets a legal floor on the income of workers. It provides economic security for low-wage workers and ensures that their basic needs are met, thereby reducing poverty. For low-income workers, increasing the minimum wage directly enhances their earnings, living standards, and financial stability. As a research focus, the primary area of examination would be the precise effect of minimum wage adjustments on the income levels of those in low-paying jobs: analyze the changes in the real income of low-income workers after the augement of minimum salary and the improvement influence of family economic conditions. Second one is exploring the impact on this system changes employment sector: Examine whether raising the minimum wage causes employers that reduce hiring or layoffs, and the potential impact of such changes on low-skilled labor markets. The last one is analyzing the impacts of minimum wage policies of psychological and low-income groups’ social wellbeing: Using questionnaires to understand changes in the perception of low-income workers about their job satisfaction, quality of life, and social status. The rise in this system significantly rose the income level of low-income workers, helped to alleviate poverty, and raised the basic standard of living of these families. In the short term, that increase may have a certain negative impact on some labor-intensive industries, in the form of a small number of job losses; But over the longer term, the job market stabilizes as companies adapt to increased costs and improve efficiency through technological innovation.

To What Extent Did the Chinese Banking Industry Affect Chinas Economic Growth in Past 50 Years?

Currently, the Chinese economy is encountering a period of stagnation in its development. Sustaining the rapid growth rate of the economy has become a challenge, as there is a lack of adequate momentum for continuous high-speed advancement. The nation is edging closer to the middle-income trap, and the conventional approach of relying on investment, exports, and consumption to propel economic growth is proving to be unattainable. It must be achieved through the transformation of economic structure, and the transformation of the financial industry is the most important part of it. The research question of this article is how commercial banks affect economic growth and how China's banking system has developed. The WTO's entrance into China has been a major catalyst for the banking industry and its system to be built. The literature review section delved deeply into economic growth, examining the concept of it, how it is achieved in China, as well as any factors that may influence it. More importantly, the study reviewed what the banking industry is and the development stages of China's banking industry. The banking industry's development was examined in the concluding part of the literature review, examining pertinent studies on the effect of economic expansion. In the discussion section of the research, we analyzed how the banking industry affects economic growth through its impact on capital allocation, banking services, and currency. Ultimately, we drew corresponding conclusions and proposed countermeasures and suggestions for the future development of the banking industry. Due to the fact that the industrial structure of developing countries is usually dominated by labor-intensive industries, clarifying the interrelationship between China's banking structure, capital allocation efficiency, and economic growth has universal significance and reference value for relevant financial arrangements in developing countries.

Globalisation and Performance of Manufacturing Sector in Punjab and Tamil Nadu: Implications for Employment and Wages

The present study is a comparative analysis of the performance of the organised manufacturing sector of Punjab and Tamil Nadu. The aggregate and the disaggregate picture reveals that globalisation-led growth of the manufacturing sector in Tamil Nadu has transformed its economy to a highly industrialised economy in Indian Union, and Punjab remained far behind in this context. However, the implications of the performance of the manufacturing sector on employment and wage share have shown common characteristics in both states. The increased capital intensity in the globalisation era has widened the gap between labour productivity and wage share in both states. Since 1991, the emoluments (capitalist share) have increased at a higher rate than the real wages. The decomposition analysis of wage share shows that the falling labour–capital ratio and increased contractualisation of the labour market are some of the important reasons behind the low growth of employment and fall in the wage share. Moreover, the disaggregated analysis reveals a secular increase in the use of capital per unit of labour in labour-intensive industries that has further reduced the employment elasticity of gross value added (GVA) in both states. It also highlights that regional heterogeneity plays an important role in the performance of a particular industry with respect to employment and wage share. JEL Codes: F60, J24, L60

ASEAN Four’s middle income trap dilemma: evidence of the middle technology trap

In Southeast Asia, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines are defined by the World Bank as countries that failed to overcome the "middle income trap". The four Southeast Asian countries (hereinafter referred to as the "ASEAN Four") entered the ranks of middle-income economies in the late 1970s and early 1980s and achieved rapid economic development throughout the 1980s and 1990s. However, since the early 2000s, the competitive advantages of these countries’ labor-intensive industries have started to decline, while the process of industrial transformation and technological improvement has been stagnated due to the lack of innovation resources. With limited R&D input and insufficient indigenous tech innovation, these countries’ manufacturing industry show a trend of "deindustrialization" and the "middle technology trap" phenomenon emerged. As the manufacturing sector failed to generate value-added that promotes economic growth and national income increase, ASEAN Four have so far yet to enter the high-income ranks. Drawing from the cases of ASEAN Four, this paper argues that the "middle technology trap" is a key contributing factor to the “middle income trap,” and countries fallen into the “middle income trap” often experience the "middle technology trap" as a concomitant phenomenon. The paper first introduces the industrialization process of ASEAN Four while analyzes the challenges they faced in industrial structural transformation and technology advancement. It then discusses major reasons that these countries failed to step over both the "middle technology trap" and the “middle income trap”, including limited technology spillovers from FDI, R&D investment shortages and insufficient industrial policies, low-quality education system, deficient intellectual property protection and underdeveloped regional capital markets. The paper concludes with some implications for China and discussion on potential future research on distinctions of the “middle technology trap” phenomenon between upper middle-income and lower middle-income countries.

Korean human resource management as number one: lessons for the Asia Pacific

ABSTRACT Despite the devastation caused by Japanese colonial rule and over three years of the Korean War, the Korean economy has created the Miracle on the Han River over the past half-century, joining the ranks of advanced nations. Although it started with low-wage and labour-intensive industries, the accumulation and utilization of human capital have prepared companies like Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, Naver and Coupang for a new leap forward. However, global issues such as the climate crisis and sustainability, the dual labour market, adversarial labour relations and low birth rates with rapid ageing are new challenges for Korean-style HRM. This is a collection of articles dealing with the question of Korean HRM as a success factor of Korean development and a seed for problems destabilizing the Korean economic perspective in the 21st century.

Current Status of Patent Research on Picking End Effector

Background: Fruit and vegetable picking, as the most important part of fruit and vegetable production, is a labor-intensive industry. Fruit and vegetable picking robots can effectively improve the efficiency of picking and reduce labor requirements. As the most important part of the picking robot, the picking end-effector effectively plays a key role in improving the picking efficiency and ensuring the wholeness of the fruit. Therefore, the development trend of picking end effectors has received more and more attention. Objective: The study aimed to solve the problems of high labor consumption and low picking efficiency of manual picking; thus, the grasping method of the picking end effector has been continuously improved. Methods: This article has presented various representative patents related to the picking end effector, such as the suction end effector, multi-finger end effector, and bionic end effector. Results: Through the investigation of a large number of picking end effector patents, the current problems, such as low accuracy and large clamping damage, are summarized and analyzed. In addition, the future trends of fruit and vegetable picking end effectors are discussed. Conclusion: The optimization of the picking end effector is conducive to reducing manual labor and improving the picking rate of fruits and vegetables. More relevant patents will be invented in the future.

Beneath the kiln: The unyielding spirit of women shaping rural India's brick tale

The brick industry, characterized as an informal and unorganized sector in India, has witnessed growth concurrent with urbanization across various states. This labor-intensive industry relies significantly on the widespread exploitation of women and children and heavily depends on migrant workers for production. This study aims to shed light on the current socio-economic conditions of women in the brick industries of Falta and Budge Budge-II C.D blocks in the South 24 Parganas District of Indian state West Bengal. The variables considered for this study encompass gender, age, marital status, nature of work, experience, education, income, benefits, and challenges —these factors serve as indicators of the socio-economic status of women in these manufacturing units. Environmentalists have identified the brick industry as one of the hazardous sectors with adverse implications for the health and physiological well-being of women and children. The present study is based on both primary and secondary data. The findings reveal that women in this field experience various forms of suffering, and the prevalence of child labor is notably high for both boys and girls in the brick kilns of these two blocks.

The North-South divide and everything that gets left out in-between: conceptualizing Central and Eastern Europe to explain its positioning on climate change

The North-South divide forms the central axis along which scholars study the contemporary global order. Yet many countries fall in-between the cracks of a world divided into core and periphery. This paper develops a structural account to understand the position of countries in this space of in-betweenness. The focus is on Central and Eastern Europe. I draw on already existing scholarship on liminalities, the varieties of capitalism and transition studies to argue that a liminal identity of in-betweenness goes hand-in-glove with a domestic logic of transitioning, as the state seeks to move somewhere else. Furthermore transitioning dynamics position the state in the semi-periphery, as the transition to the civilizational core requires capital and know-how from abroad. The resulting semi-peripheral position further underlines the liminal identity. The paper uses this apparatus to understand why CEE countries are typically climate change laggards within the EU. Their continuing liminal identity results in frustration over and resistance against the schooling tendencies of Brussels and Western European capitals. The dynamics of a sense of imposition of climate change mitigation policies stem from CEE’s liminal positioning as apprentices, but the reasons for the perceived alienness of such policies are located in domestic societal dynamics, and CEE countries’ economic structure. The specific political structures of communism and the communist transition have strengthened particularistic personal ties of friendship and family between individuals and the localities they live in, while simultaneously weakening general and abstract conceptions of the public good. Accordingly initiatives for preserving specific localities can be strong, but conceptions of protecting an abstract, global climate, are not well developed. Additionally, the material costs of protecting the climate are higher in post-communist economies due to their comparative advantage in resource and labour intensive industries, their reliance on foreign capital, and a lack of domestic innovations.

The impact of ESG performance on corporate sustainable growth from the perspective of carbon sentiment

With the increasing importance of environmental and economic sustainability concerns, the concept of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) has gained significant attention. In the era of digitalization, a research approach called carbon sentiment analysis has emerged as an innovative method. This study aims to explore the connections between carbon sentiment, ESG, and corporate sustainable growth within the context of the green economy. By using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis and establishing a panel data model of ESG performance and sustainable growth for Chinese listed companies, a notable positive correlation between the two variables was observed. Endogeneity was addressed using the two-stage instrumental variable method (2SLS) and the dynamic panel Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) model, with the results remaining robust both before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Carbon-related news and textual information were collected and analyzed using advanced deep learning methods in Natural Language Processing (NLP), specifically Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) and Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) models. This analysis enabled sentiment analysis and identification of the sentiment orientation of carbon news. The obtained sentiment scores were then integrated with company data to establish a moderation effect model. The findings of the study reveal that carbon sentiment significantly and positively moderates ESG performance in relation to corporate sustainable growth. Furthermore, the construction of a mediation effect model showed that carbon sentiment can moderate ESG performance by reducing environmental uncertainty, enhancing social trust, and alleviating financing constraints, thereby influencing corporate sustainable growth. The results of the heterogeneity group regression analysis demonstrate that the impact of ESG performance driven by carbon sentiment on sustainable growth is more pronounced in carbon market pilot regions, non-heavily polluting industries, and labor-intensive industries. This research provides a fresh perspective for understanding the dynamics of ESG, online carbon sentiment, and their implications for corporate sustainable growth. Additionally, it contributes to the development of the green economy and the formulation of environmental management policies.

Integrating Building Management Systems in High-Rise Structures using Building Information Modeling

Rapid industrialization and population growth in urban areas has resulted in scarce land resources thus changing builtform tremendously. Complex construction such as high-rise structures are becoming an essential requirement in urbanareas. Efficient Building Management System (BMS) such as fire safety, heating ventilation and air-conditioning,security, and surveillance along with the operation and maintenance is crucial for high-rise construction projects. Theconstruction industry is one of the most labor-intensive industries in the world with a human centric managementapproach. With the advent of computer technologies, planning and management of building systems in a constructionproject have become easier. The concept of Building Information Modeling (BIM) to manage building managementsystems in construction projects is gaining popularity. In this study, an integrated framework is proposed that includesnumerous aspects of building management systems in high-rise structures with a dynamic BIM model. This proposedframework was explored with a case illustration of a multi-story building. Preliminary results of the model arepresented herewith.

Ethical gamified health communication intervention to prevent Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs) in Myanmar migrants at Thailand's seafood factory: A study protocol

Background Thailand's seafood industry heavily depends on Myanmar migrant workers, who face significant occupational health issues, including an increase in work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs). Due to linguistic and cultural limitations, traditional health communication strategies often fail to reach this population. This study explores the effectiveness of a culturally and linguistically tailored gamified health communication intervention aimed at preventing WMSDs in Myanmar migrant workers in a Thai seafood factory. Methods The intervention is developed and then implemented in two phases. The objective of the study is to develop, implement, and evaluate a gamified health intervention for Myanmar migrant workers that will prevent WMSDs. The intervention is customized to the workers' cultural background and work natures through focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and expert reviews. The intervention then consists of a set of 12 exercises designed to prevent the WMSDs. The Intervention’s impact is assessed through pre- and post-intervention evaluations measuring changes in knowledge, awareness, and self-reported musculoskeletal health. Results Since this is a study protocol, precise findings are not yet available. The target audience is expected to adopt safe work practices more frequently, have better physical health, and have a greater understanding of WMSDs. Conclusions This protocol describes a novel way to use a culturally-tailored and ethically appropriate gamified health communication intervention to address the health issues (such as WMSDs) experienced by Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand's seafood industry. This technique may serve as a model for comparable health promotion initiatives in other labour-intensive industries and migrant worker groups, promoting better awareness and prevention of WMSDs. Registration Thai Clinical Trials Registry (TCTR) (TCTR20240515003, Registration Date: 15 May 2024).

Nowcasting economic activity with mobility data

We develop high-frequency indices to measure sales in service industries and production in the manufacturing sector using GPS mobility data from mobile applications. First, by utilizing the point of interest data, we develop indicators to capture sales in amusement parks, shopping centers, and food services. Second, we construct indicators for nowcasting production based on the foot traffic in factory areas that are identified by using the Economic Census and mobility patterns. We find that the mobility data allow us to nowcast sales in the service sectors and have the potential to be used to nowcast the production in labor-intensive industries.