Abstract

This chapter sets out to provide empirical evidence regarding the impact of economic crisis on the employment changes in the NUTS III Greek regions, during the period 2008_2012. With the application of trade-adjusted shift-share analysis, the chapter provides additional explanatory evidence on whether openness and trade have affected the resilience of regions. Results indicate that economic crisis has impacted asymmetrically on regional employment losses, leading to a widening of regional employment disparities. Construction and manufacturing have been hit severely by the crisis. Agriculture constitutes a resilient sector, while knowledge- and technology-intensive sectors are also more resilient to crisis. The less well-off regions dependent on more traditional sectors proved to be more resilient. However, trade relations and openness are offering as stabilizers to economic downturn.