Routinization, Within-Occupation Task Changes and Long-Run Employment Dynamics

Authors

Davide Consoli, INGENIO CSIC-UPVFollow
Giovanni Marin, University of Urbino `Carlo Bo', SEEDS, Ferrara, Italy.Follow
Francesco Rentocchini, European Commission, Joint Research Centre and Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods, University of MilanFollow
Francesco Vona, University of Milan, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei and OFCE Sciences-PoFollow

Date of This Version

11-18-2022

Abstract

The present study adds to the literature on routinization and employment by capturing within occupation task changes over the period 1980-2010. The main contributions are the measurement of such changes and the combination of two data sources on occupational task content for the United States: the Dictionary of Occupational Titles and the Occupational Information Network. We show that within-occupation reorientation away from routine tasks: i) accounts for 1/3 of the decline in routine-task use; ii) accelerates in the 1990s, decelerates in the 2000s but with significant convergence across occupations; iii) allows workers to escape the employment and wage decline, conditional on the initial level of routine-task intensity. The latter finding suggests that task reorientation is a key channel through which labour markets adapt to various forms of labour-saving technological change.

Recommended Citation

Consoli, Davide; Marin, Giovanni; Rentocchini, Francesco; and Vona, Francesco, "Routinization, Within-Occupation Task Changes and Long-Run Employment Dynamics" (November 18, 2022). Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Working Papers. Paper 1388.
https://services.bepress.com/feem/paper1388