Firm-level employment growth in South Africa: The role of innovation and exports

This paper investigates the effect of innovation on employment growth at the firm level in South Africa. Innovation is typically associated with better export performance at the firm level due to productivity enhancements and new products.However, the link between innovation and employment is more ambiguous. RD however, the indirect innovation channel is negative and points to the idea that the productivity enhancements necessary for South African exporters to compete internationally might promote labour-saving innovations.A‚Â