Dijous 11 de juny, el Dipòsit Digital no estarà operatiu de 15:00 a 17:00 h per tasques de manteniment. Disculpeu les molèsties.
El jueves 11 de Junio, el Dipòsit Digital no estará operativo de 15:00 a 17:00 h debido a tareas de mantenimiento. Disculpen las molestias.
Thursday, Jun 11th, the Digital Repository will be unavailable due to a system update.

Files

921283.pdf (390.06 KB)

Document type

Article

Version

Accepted version

Publication date

2025-11-27

Publication license

cc-by (c) Argilés Bosch, Josep M., et al., 2025
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/228394

Analysis of the Relationship between ESG and Labor Costs : The Moderating Effect of the Legal Tradition

Journal Title

Authors

Director/Tutor

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Related resource

https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2025.25299

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) scores and labor costs per employee (LCE) in firms operating under different legal traditions, specifically comparing civil law (France) and common law (United Kingdom) countries. Utilizing data from the Orbis database for the period 2020-2022, the study employs random-effects estimations with robust standard errors. Results indicate that while the relationship between ESG and LCE is not significant in common law, it is positively significant in civil law. Results are robust to alternative ESG measures, such as the social pillar score (SOCP) estimations methods and samples. The findings suggest that the legal tradition moderates the ESG-LCE relationship, with stronger positive effects observed in civil law countries. The study highlights the importance of legal frameworks in shaping the economic impacts of ESG initiatives on labor costs. While ESG concerns may result in higher LCE, and thus increased employee compensation, implementing appropriate regulations to protect workers’ rights can foster a more effective ESG-LCE relationship than relying solely on market-based regulatory systems driven by stakeholder influence.

Subject

Sistemes de gestió mediambiental, Dret consuetudinari, Relacions laborals, Control de costos

Subject (English)

Environmental management systems, Customary law, Industrial relations, Cost control

Citation

Collections

Articles publicats en revistes (Empresa)

Citation

ARGILÉS BOSCH, Josep M., GARCÍA BLANDÓN, Josep and RAVENDA, Diego. Analysis of the Relationship between ESG and Labor Costs : The Moderating Effect of the Legal Tradition. Journal Of Business Economics And Management. 2025. Vol. 26, num. 5, pags. 1155-1174. ISSN 1611-1699. [consulted: 11 of June of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/228394

Export metadata

JSON - METS

Share record