Resumen de The value of employee retention: : Evidence from a natural experiment

Kenneth A. Younge, Matt Marx

• We estimate the firm-level returns to retaining employees using difference-in-differences analysis and a natural experiment where the enforcement of employee noncompete agreements was inadvertently reversed in Michigan. We find that noncompete enforcement boosted the short-term value of publicly traded companies by approximately 9%. The effect is increasing in local competition and growth opportunities, and offset by patenting.