Abstract: As the development of digital industry clusters progresses, clarifying the theoretical logic underlying the impact of digital industry agglomeration on labor skill premiums is a key issue for optimising income distribution and promoting high-quality economic development. Empirical research based on data from Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies in China from 2011 to 2023, which incorporates digital industry agglomeration into the framework for analysing labor skill premiums, indicates that digital industry agglomeration can significantly expand firms’ labor skill premiums. Mechanism tests indicate that improving firms’ labor investment efficiency and enhancing their innovation activity are key mechanisms through which digital industry agglomeration drives the expansion of labor skill premiums. Further heterogeneity analysis reveals that the impact of digital industry agglomeration on labor skill premiums is stronger in capital- and technology-intensive firms, high-tech firms, firms in southern regions, and firms located within artificial intelligence innovation and development pilot zones. Accordingly, it is necessary to balance the innovation-stimulating effects of digital industry agglomeration with the potential risks to income distribution, thereby establishing a firm foundation for equitable development; simultaneously, a differentiated support system tailored to enterprise types and locational conditions should be established to facilitate the expansion of the digital dividend from agglomeration hubs to the wider economy.

Key words: digital industrial agglomeration, skill premium, labor investment efficiency, innovation activity