Regional Employment Performance of Irish Industry, 1972-1996: A Job Flow Analysis

Aidan Meyler, Research Department, Central Bank of Ireland, Dame Street, Dublin 2, Ireland

Eric Strobl, Department of Economics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland

Abstract
Regional goals have always played an important part in Irish industrial policy. This paper examines the employment performance of two sub-regions (designated and non-designated areas) as defined by policy measures. By employing the job flow methodology pioneered by Davis and Haltiwanger, we find that the convergence in aggregate employment levels between designated and non-designated areas observed since 1972 has been largely driven by a higher rate of job creation in the designated areas; these jobs are also, on average, more persistent. The superior employment performance in designated areas cannot be explained by heterogeneous plant behaviour in terms of plant size and nationality of ownership.

Keywords: Ireland, Regional Policy, Job Flows

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