LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY AND TECHNOLOGICAL INTENSITY IN A RUSSIAN REGION

Abstract

Awareness that high labour productivity provides long-term economic growth stimulates scholars and policymakers to focus on the productivity gap issue. Russia significantly underperforms in labour productivity, and the gap is increasing. In this paper we analyse technological intensity as the reason of the productivity gap. We used statistical data from the Russian region (Krasnoyarsk krai) with labour productivity that is slightly below the country's average. First, we grouped regional industries by the technological intensity. Then we compared technological intensity of the regional industries with the national level and found out that the main regional sectors underperform in technological development. Econometric analysis confirmed the influence of technological intensity on labour productivity only for high-technology industries of Krasnoyarsk krai. The group of medium-low and low technology industries don’t demonstrate significant correlation between productivity and research and development intensity (or simply R&D intensity). The most meaningful productivity driver for this group of industries is investment in capital assets. So the productivity growth in the main industries of regional economy depends on external technologies but not on R&D intensity of companies. Our study contributes to the productivity gap problem and provides evidence that technological intensity affects labour productivity of high-technology industries of regional economy.