摘要：
In this study we investigated the determinants of the propensity
of Swiss firms to train apprentices. Innovation, firm age and competition
conditions on the product market are determining factors that were
especially emphasized in this investigation. We found that the skill
composition of the employment, innovation activities, firm age,
labour costs, capital intensity, and competitive pressures all play
a discernible role, even if not at the same extent, in determining
the propensity of apprentice training.
The data used in this study were collected in the course of four
surveys among Swiss enterprises in the years 1996, 1999, 2002 and
2005 using a questionnaire which included besides questions on basic
firm characteristics also several innovation indicators.
New elements of the analysis that distinguish it from already done
work on this subject, especially in Switzerland, are: (a) the focus
on the role of innovation and firm age for apprentice training;
(b) the consideration of effects of competition on the product market;
(c) the separate investigation of three sectors of the economy (manufacturing;
services; construction); (d) the wide spectrum of determinants of
training propensity that are taken into consideration; (e) the use
of a panel of firms covering a period of about ten years (1995-2004).
