ABSTRACT
This study aims to analyse the effects of investment incentive packages on the labour market on a national and regional level in Turkey. Reliable data especially on the labour market in Turkey (at NUTS 2 level) can only be reached for the periods after 2004. Therefore, the effects of the support that was supplied by the incentive packages for the period of 2004–2016 on the labour markets of 26 regions were examined in the context of employment, unemployment, labour force participation rate, and real wages. Empirical analyses focus on a causal relationship between labour market and incentive variables, and the panel predicts effects through utilizing panel econometrics. In the light of the results, it may be concluded that, in comparison to Istanbul which attracts a large share of investment incentives, the other regions used such incentives more effectively. Another finding suggests that providing investment incentives by considering regional, and if possible, sectoral differences might increase the expected returns from the incentives in question.
