本研究以具有ESG分數的美國上市企業為樣本,分析企業於新冠肺炎疫情爆發前(2019年)的員工福利績效與新冠肺炎期間(2020年2至3月)股票報酬之間的關係,並進一步分析此關係是否隨各企業人力資本的重要性而異。實證結果發現,企業於新冠肺炎前對員工福利的重視程度與新冠肺炎期間的股票報酬呈正向關係,顯示正因為新冠肺炎危害人體健康,從而對企業的人力資本運作造成不利影響,因此在新冠肺炎前對員工提供較佳福利的企業,在疫情期間更受到投資者的重視,故有較佳的報酬。此外,依人力資本對企業的重要性將企業分類後,實證結果發現:若企業的人力資本需求越大,則企業對員工福利重視程度與股票報酬之間的正向關係越顯著。最後,本研究的穩健性分析發現:延長樣本期間或考量企業對員工福利的爭議事件後,企業對員工福利的重視與股票報酬的正向關係仍存在;若以企業社會責任的其他面向取代企業的員工福利績效,則其與新冠肺炎期間股票報酬的關係仍維持正向顯著。
Using the data of U.S. listed firms with ESG scores, this thesis examines the relation between firms’ emphasis on employee welfare and stock holding return during the 2020 COVID-19 period. The empirical results show that firms that provide employees with better benefits before the outbreak of COVID-19 had higher abnormal returns. In addition, this positive relation is stronger for firms with greater demand for human capital. The results in this thesis are robust. The positive relation between firms’ emphasis on employee welfare and stock return during the 2020 COVID-19 period still holds when the sample period is extended, when controversies over employee welfare are considered, and when the employee welfare score is replaced by other components of the ESG score.