Management of human resources in the green economy: Does green labour productivity matter in low-carbon development in China

Environmentally friendly economic development has become a global concern, whereas the existing literature has ignored the human resources management in the green economy. This study utilizes the basic Cobb–Douglas production function and examines the nonlinear effect of labour productivity on the environment in China. Non-linear findings infer that a positive change in labour productivity has a positive and negative change in labour productivity, and has a negative effect on CO(2) emissions in the short run, while results persisted and stable in the long run in China. The crux of this study is that labour productivity is vital for understanding the evolution of a green economy. Conventionally, capital productivity and energy consumption also tend to follow dirty productivity growth and thus, increased environmental pollution. Indeed, research and development is a forceful input to environmental quality. Based on findings, policymakers should need to focus on human resource productivity, green business, and ecosystem protection.