Human Capital and Wages in Exporting Firms

This paper studies the link between a \u85rms education level, export performance and wages of its workers. We argue that \u85rms may escape intense competition in international markets by using high skilled workers to di¤erentiate their products. This story is consistent with our empirical results. Using a very rich matched worker-rm longitudinal dataset we \u85nd that \u85rms with high export intensities pay higher wages. However, an interaction term between export intensity and skill intensity has a positive impact on wages and it absorbs the direct e¤ect of the export intensity. That is, we \u85nd an export wage premium, but it accrues to workers in \u85rms with high skill intensities