What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling

Labor absorption is a persistent challenge in Indonesia, particularly within the MSME sector, which plays a vital role in employment generation. However, existing research has largely overlooked the influence of household spending and financial access on labor absorption, as well as the mediating me...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Vivi Silvia, Maulidar Agustina, Dian Zulfa
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-12-01
Series:Cogent Economics & Finance
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23322039.2025.2485398
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849766911243452416
author Vivi Silvia
Maulidar Agustina
Dian Zulfa
author_facet Vivi Silvia
Maulidar Agustina
Dian Zulfa
author_sort Vivi Silvia
collection DOAJ
description Labor absorption is a persistent challenge in Indonesia, particularly within the MSME sector, which plays a vital role in employment generation. However, existing research has largely overlooked the influence of household spending and financial access on labor absorption, as well as the mediating mechanisms that connect these factors. Addressing these gaps, this study investigates how household spending, working capital credit, and the number of MSME units affect labor absorption in Indonesia, focusing on their relationship with spending on labor and MSME output value, using panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) modeling across 34 provinces from 2013 to 2023. The results show that, in the long term, household spending, working capital credit, labor spending, and the number of MSME units significantly enhance labor absorption, while MSME output value has no direct effect. Household spending fully mediates the relationship between MSME output and labor absorption, while other relationships show partial mediation. In the short term, the relationships are less stable due to adjustments toward equilibrium. Policy implications highlight boosting household purchasing power, improving credit access, and supporting MSME growth to enhance job creation. Recommendations include lowering interest rates, providing workforce training, encouraging innovation, and evaluating policies to strengthen employment opportunities.
format Article
id doaj-art-aa323bd8efc64bfc817d2938786dbc12
institution DOAJ
issn 2332-2039
language English
publishDate 2025-12-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
record_format Article
series Cogent Economics & Finance
spelling doaj-art-aa323bd8efc64bfc817d2938786dbc122025-08-20T03:04:26ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Economics & Finance2332-20392025-12-0113110.1080/23322039.2025.2485398What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modelingVivi Silvia0Maulidar Agustina1Dian Zulfa2Department of Economics, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, IndonesiaDepartment of Economics, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, IndonesiaDepartment of Economics, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, IndonesiaLabor absorption is a persistent challenge in Indonesia, particularly within the MSME sector, which plays a vital role in employment generation. However, existing research has largely overlooked the influence of household spending and financial access on labor absorption, as well as the mediating mechanisms that connect these factors. Addressing these gaps, this study investigates how household spending, working capital credit, and the number of MSME units affect labor absorption in Indonesia, focusing on their relationship with spending on labor and MSME output value, using panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) modeling across 34 provinces from 2013 to 2023. The results show that, in the long term, household spending, working capital credit, labor spending, and the number of MSME units significantly enhance labor absorption, while MSME output value has no direct effect. Household spending fully mediates the relationship between MSME output and labor absorption, while other relationships show partial mediation. In the short term, the relationships are less stable due to adjustments toward equilibrium. Policy implications highlight boosting household purchasing power, improving credit access, and supporting MSME growth to enhance job creation. Recommendations include lowering interest rates, providing workforce training, encouraging innovation, and evaluating policies to strengthen employment opportunities.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23322039.2025.2485398Labor absorptionhousehold spendingMSME Developmentworking capital credit, panel ARDL modellingD01D13
spellingShingle Vivi Silvia
Maulidar Agustina
Dian Zulfa
What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
Cogent Economics & Finance
Labor absorption
household spending
MSME Development
working capital credit, panel ARDL modelling
D01
D13
title What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
title_full What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
title_fullStr What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
title_full_unstemmed What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
title_short What drives household labor absorption in Indonesia? A provincial-level analysis using panel ARDL modeling
title_sort what drives household labor absorption in indonesia a provincial level analysis using panel ardl modeling
topic Labor absorption
household spending
MSME Development
working capital credit, panel ARDL modelling
D01
D13
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23322039.2025.2485398
work_keys_str_mv AT vivisilvia whatdriveshouseholdlaborabsorptioninindonesiaaprovinciallevelanalysisusingpanelardlmodeling
AT maulidaragustina whatdriveshouseholdlaborabsorptioninindonesiaaprovinciallevelanalysisusingpanelardlmodeling
AT dianzulfa whatdriveshouseholdlaborabsorptioninindonesiaaprovinciallevelanalysisusingpanelardlmodeling