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Vanderleyden, Julie & Deborah De Moortel (2025): Employment Quality as a Framework to Understand Precarious Employment and Beyond in Cross‐National Contexts: Conceptual, Methodological, and Practical Recommendations. In: Sociology Compass, Jg. 19, H. 7. DOI:10.1111/soc4.70083

Abstract

"Precarious employment is a growing global concern. However, what constitutes or is perceived as precarious employment varies significantly across regions, particularly between the Global North and Global South. We propose the multidimensional Employment Quality (EQ) framework as a heuristic tool to explore the variety in EQ patterns from a cross-national comparative perspective. This framework, which incorporates a typological analytical approach, enables the exploration of diverse patterns and combinations of (in)secure employment features across the workforce. By doing so the full range of employment arrangements is captured, from highly secure to precarious, while also accounting for “mixed” forms. Yet, comparing the prevalence and forms of EQ globally presents significant conceptual, methodological, and data-related considerations, given the vast differences in employment and labor market features worldwide. Additionally, we provide practical tools for addressing the various considerations, with the aim of advancing EQ research for comparative purposes across diverse contexts. A comprehensive understanding of EQ configurations emerging across different contexts and their differential impacts on specific worker groups offers critical insights for informing labor market policies and strategies aimed at promoting more secure and equitable forms of employment in both the Global North and Global South." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Veen, Alex, Tom Barratt, Caleb Goods & Marian Baird (2025): ‘Woeful Pay, But Still, I Enjoy It’: Refining Subjective Job Quality in Ride‐Share Work. In: New Technology, Work and Employment, S. 1-12. DOI:10.1111/ntwe.70001

Abstract

"Workers who experience structural barriers in the labor market are overrepresented in the gig economy. There is limited research on how the broader context of labor markets and welfare systems shapes workers' motivations for, and subjective understandings of, ride-share work. Using established concepts of ‘constrained agency ’, ‘labor market objectives’ and ‘life stories’ from labor geography, this study develops a conceptual framework to advance subjective understandings of job quality. Drawing upon 59 interviews with workers from three distinct but overlapping disadvantaged groups (workers with disability, caring responsibilities and/or aged 45 and over), we focus on the experiences of and motivations for the work on a market-leading platform in Australia. Our findings highlight that subjective job quality perceptions are a complex mesh of individual circumstances and multi-layered social structures. Our framework helps to better understand why the work organisation and technology of the platform are valued by some yet loathed by others." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Wolff, Joachim (2025): Bedarf es schärferer Leistungsminderungen beim Bürgergeld? (Serie "Bürgergeld"). In: IAB-Forum H. 10.03.2025, 2025-03-10. DOI:10.48720/IAB.FOO.20250310.01

Abstract

"Die Sanktionen im Bürgergeld sind viel zu stark abgemildert worden, ist in der öffentlichen Debatte immer wieder zu hören. Forschungsergebnisse zeigen: Sanktionen wirken, sind aber kein Allheilmittel. Und sie haben auch nicht intendierte Wirkungen." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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de Oliveira, Claire, Margaret Jamieson & Sara Bonato (2025): Mental health as a determinant of work: a scoping review on the impact of mental health on precarious employment. In: Health Policy, Jg. 161. DOI:10.1016/j.healthpol.2025.105395

Abstract

"Background: While many studies have examined the impact of precarious employment on mental health, the reverse relationship has received less attention. Objectives: The objectives of this scoping review were to ascertain the existing literature examining the impact of mental health on precarious employment and to describe, synthesize, and critically appraise it. Methods: Business Source Premier, EconLit, Embase, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and Web of Science were searched from 1 January 1980 to 30 August 2024. Additionally, searches were undertaken in Google and specific websites; references of key papers were also examined. Relevant data were extracted from studies, and their quality was assessed, namely whether they accounted for endogeneity. Evidence was synthesized by mental disorder/illness/problem using a narrative synthesis approach. Results: After duplicates were removed, the search yielded 10,048 unique records; ultimately, 19 relevant papers, corresponding to 20 unique studies, were deemed relevant. Few specifically focused on mental health as a determinant of precarious employment and/or recognised the potential presence of endogeneity. Studies found mixed evidence on the relationship between mental health and precarious employment. While the evidence suggests that psychological distress and mental health complaints likely increase the probability of precarious employment, anxiety and emotional exhaustion likely do not. The evidence on depressive disorders is mixed/inconclusive. Conclusion: Some of the existing literature suggests that people with poor mental health may be at a higher risk of precarious employment; however, in some instances, the evidence was either mixed/inconclusive or absent. More high-quality studies are needed to inform clear policy recommendations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.) ((en))

Abstract

"Instead of flexi-work and increased labor participation for women, the platform economy has deepened intersectional inequalities—of gender, class, geography, and race—making women workers more vulnerable. At the Beijing+30 conjuncture, we urgently need multi-scalar policy responses that can get our institutions ready for a feminist future of work. To explore the building blocks of this imperative, IT for Change, DAWN, and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) convened a series of four consultations in the Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, and Latin America in February 2025, bringing together 50+ feminist scholars, practitioners, gender equality experts, lawyers focused on labor rights, and trade union representatives." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Altenried, Moritz (2024): Mobile workers, contingent labour: Migration, the gig economy and the multiplication of labour. In: Environment and planning. A, Economy and space, Jg. 56, H. 4, S. 1113-1128. DOI:10.1177/0308518X211054846

Abstract

"The article takes the surprising exit of the food delivery platform Deliveroo from Berlin as a starting point to analyse the relationship between migration and the gig economy. In Berlin and many cities across the globe, migrant workers are indispensable to the operations of digital platforms such as Uber, Helpling, or Deliveroo. The article uses in-depth ethnographic and qualitative research to show how the latter's exit from Berlin provides an almost exemplary picture of why urban gig economy platforms are strongholds of migrant labour, while at the same time, demonstrating the very contingency of this form of work. The article analyses the specific reasons why digital platforms are particularly open to migrants and argues that the very combination of new forms of algorithmic management and hyper-flexible forms of employment that is characteristic of gig economy platforms is also the reason why these platforms are geared perfectly toward the exploitation of migrant labour. This allows the analysis of digital platforms in the context of stratified labour markets and situates them within a long history of contingent labour that is closely intertwined with the mobility of labour." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2021 a Pion publication) ((en))

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Böhme, René (2024): Arbeitsausbeutung im Reinigungsgewerbe. Problemlagen, Hilfestrukturen, Handlungsmöglichkeiten. (Working paper Forschungsförderung / Hans Böckler Stiftung 333), Düsseldorf, 89 S.

Abstract

"Arbeitsausbeutung ist in Deutschland alltägliche Praxis. Zahlreiche Hürden führen dazu, dass es in den seltensten Fällen zur Strafverfolgung der Täter:innen kommt - das macht Ausbeutung zu einem lukrativen Geschäftsmodell. Um dem entgegenzuwirken, sind Bund, Länder und Kommunen aufgefordert, eine Gesamtstrategie zur Bekämpfung von Arbeitsausbeutung zu entwickeln. Diese sollte Erleichterungen bei der Strafverfolgung, quantitative und qualitative Verbesserungen der Kontrollmechanismen sowie eine Stärkung des Hilfesystems umfassen." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Depperschmidt, Rina, Heleen Matton, Hans Pongratz & Pia Probst (2024): Plattformnutzung durch Solo-Selbstständige. Explorative Befunde und forschungsstrategische Perspektiven. In: Arbeit. Zeitschrift für Arbeitsforschung, Arbeitsgestaltung und Arbeitspolitik, Jg. 33, H. 1-2, S. 3-27. DOI:10.1515/arbeit-2024-0002

Abstract

"Plattformarbeit ist für Solo-Selbstständige zu einem wichtigen Erwerbszugang geworden. Dieser Zusammenhang wurde noch wenig untersucht, obwohl der Forschungsstand für beide Erwerbsformen ähnliche Bedingungen ausweist. Mittels einer qualitativen Befragung haben wir die Plattformerfahrungen von 20 Solo-Selbstständigen aus drei Berufsfeldern in vergleichender Perspektive analysiert: Yoga-Lehrer*innen, Sprachlehrer*innen und Creator*innen von Inhalten für die sozialen Medien. Trotz verschiedener Formen der Nutzung von Plattformdiensten sind die Resultate ähnlich: Für kleinere Zusatzeinnahmen ist beträchtlicher Aufwand erforderlich, aber Tools und Informationsangebote der Plattformen machen Arbeitserleichterungen möglich. Die Solo-Selbstständigen erleben viele der aus der Plattformforschung bekannten Abhängigkeiten und verschärften Konkurrenzbedingungen auf Online-Märkten. Nur für wenige Creator*innen führt Plattformarbeit aus einer prekären Selbstständigkeit heraus. Der Beitrag plädiert dafür, die beiden Forschungsfelder stärker zu verbinden und mit institutionellen Absicherungen des solo-selbstständigen Erwerbs auch die Bedingungen von Plattformarbeit zu verbessern." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter)

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Gray, B.J., M.L. Griffiths, R.G. Kyle, K.R. Isherwood, C. Humphreys & A.R. Davies (2024): Precarious employment and associations with socio-demographic characteristics and self-reported health in Wales, UK. In: Public health, Jg. 236, S. 452-458. DOI:10.1016/j.puhe.2024.08.015

Abstract

"Objectives: The study's aim was to explore the prevalence of precarious employment (PE) in Wales prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and examine associations with PE domains across socio-demographics and self-reported health. Study design: A cross-sectional design was used to explore the prevalence of PE in Wales prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, in February 2020. Methods: Data were collected from a national household survey carried out in May/June 2020, with a sample of 1032 residents in Wales. PE was determined using the Employment Precariousness Scale. Associations between experiencing PE and socio-demographic/health characteristics were examined using Chi-squared tests and logistic regression models (multinomial and binary). Results: Overall, before the pandemic, one in four respondents (26.5%) was in PE, with the most prevalent domains, wages, and disempowerment being experienced by at least 50% of respondents. Worse perceived treatment at work was twice as likely in those reporting pre-existing conditions (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 2.45 95% confidence interval [CI]: [1.33–4.49]), poorer general health (aOR: 2.33 95% CI: [1.22–4.47]), or low mental wellbeing (aOR: 2.81 95% CI: [1.34–5.88]). Those with high wage precariousness were three times more likely to report low mental wellbeing (aOR 3.12 95% CI [1.54–6.32]). Conclusions: The creation and Provision of secure, adequately paid job opportunities has the potential to reduce the prevalence of PE in Wales. Targeting such employment opportunities to those people currently unwell would have better population health gains." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hayes, L.J.B. & Naomi Maynard (2024): ‘Workers using foodbanks’: the embedding of food insecurity at the nexus of welfare and employment laws. In: The Journal of Poverty and Social Justice, Jg. 32, H. 3, S. 318-342. DOI:10.1332/17598273y2024d000000026

Abstract

"In this first UK study of ‘Workers using foodbanks’, 65 per cent of research participants, including 76 per cent of those of working age, identified poor-quality employment as the root cause of their food insecurity. This primary problem of the deficient quality of jobs was characterized by insecure work, low wages, and excessive mental stress. Data revealed an environment in which workers are required to claim benefits because available employment cannot sustain their needs. A contemporary generation of ‘in-and-out-of-work[ers]’ are food insecure because of a secondary problem of inadequate welfare support. Post-pandemic welfare laws are interacting with ineffective employment rights protection to scaffold a low-wage labour market in which jobs are stripped of qualities that meet workers ’ basic needs. There is an urgent need to respond to the UKs record high incidence of food insecurity by improving the quality of available employment so that all jobs deliver adequate income, security of working arrangements, and support for good mental and physical health. ‘Workers using foodbanks’ is an aphorism that captures a contemporary reality in which the risk of food insecurity is embedded in contractual arrangements for work that are forged at the nexus of welfare and employment laws." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2024 Policy Press) ((en))

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Hüttenhoff, Frederic & Karen Jaehrling (2024): Werkverträge – wachsende Parallelwelt in transnationalen Arbeitsmärkten. (IAQ-Report 2024-04), Duisburg ; Essen, 19 S. DOI:10.17185/duepublico/81838

Abstract

"In manchen Branchen wie dem Baugewerbe und Schiffbau haben Werkverträge zugenommen und einen Funktionswandel durchlaufen. Dort zeichnet sich ein Produktionsmodell ab, das mittels Subunternehmen und unter Rückgriff auf internationale Arbeitsmärkte Firmenstrukturen verschleiert und die Feststellung der verantwortlichen Arbeitgeber erschwert. Diese Intransparenz hat eine erhebliche Prekarisierung der Arbeits- und Lebensbedingungen der betroffenen, in der Regel migrantischen Arbeitskräfte zur Folge. Um dem zu begegnen, haben Gewerkschaften, Betriebsräte und Beratungsorganisationen begonnen, sich transnationaler auszurichten. Insbesondere vertrauensbildende Maßnahmen sind ein wichtiger Bestandteil der neuen Strategien. Nicht alle Probleme können durch eine Rechtsmobilisierung „von unten“ und kollektive Verhandlungen der Sozialpartner gelöst werden. Die Durchsetzung von equal pay und equal treatment bleibt eine staatliche Kernaufgabe." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Jankowski, Krzysztof Z. (2024): Positioning precarity: The contingent nature of precarious work in structure and practice. In: The British journal of sociology, Jg. 75, H. 5, S. 715-730. DOI:10.1111/1468-4446.13125

Abstract

"Conceptualizing precarity has come to rest on the multi-dimensional and differentiated insecurities of job and worker, this however belies the relationship between structure and experience where precarity originates. To bridge that relationship, I employ the landscape concept to position workers relative to the structural contingency of precarious work. To study this landscape, I conducted an ethnography involving job searching, working, and interviewing workers. While certainly insecure, these jobs displayed parallel characteristics of streamlined hiring and short-notice starts which workers took advantage of. I explore three ideal-typical ‘jobs’—the first, only, and best job—to examine how vulnerability is balanced with contingency to produce precarity. This analysis and the landscape approach locate the political-economic transformation of work in the context of workers' lives and their labor market position. Taking precarious work is an act of balancing one's vulnerabilities in a way that constructs and thus naturalizes precarity. Overall, the article contributes an image of an economy where workers have to be opportunistic in a continual struggle for work while stratified by their personal circumstances and position in this labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Jones, Katy, Sharon Wright & Lisa Scullion (2024): The Impact of Welfare Conditionality on Experiences of Job Quality. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 38, H. 6, S. 1658-1679. DOI:10.1177/09500170231219677

Abstract

"This article contributes to emerging debates about how behavioural conditionality within welfare systems influences job quality. Drawing upon analysis of unique data from three waves of qualitative longitudinal interviews with 46 UK social security recipients (133 interviews), we establish that the impact of welfare conditionality is so substantial that it is no longer adequate to discuss job quality without reference to its interconnections to the welfare system. More specifically, we identify how conditionality drives welfare recipients’ experience of four core dimensions of jobquality: disempowering and propelling claimants towards inadequate pay, insecurity and poor employment terms, undermining multiple intrinsic characteristics of work and creating what we term a new ‘Work–Life–Welfare balance’. Instead of acting as a neutral arbitrator between jobseekers and employers, the welfare system is exposed as complicit in reinforcing one-sided flexibility through one-sided conditionality, by emphasising intensive job-seeking, while leaving poor-quality work provided by employers unchecked." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Manning, Alan & Graham Mazeine (2024): Subjective Job Insecurity and the Rise of the Precariat: Evidence from the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States. In: The Review of Economics and Statistics, Jg. 106, H. 3, S. 748-761. DOI:10.1162/rest_a_01196

Abstract

"There is a widespread belief that work is less secure than in the past, that an increasing share of workers are part of the “precariat.” It is hard to find much evidence for this in objective measures of job security, but perhaps subjective measures show different trends. This paper shows that in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, workers feel as secure as they ever have in the past 30 years. This is partly because job insecurity is very cyclical and (pre-COVID) unemployment rates very low, but there is also no clear underlying trend towards increased subjective measures of job insecurity. This conclusion seems robust to controlling for the changing mix of the labor force, and it is true for specific subsets of workers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © MIT Press Journals) ((en))

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Orth, Barbara (2024): Stratified pathways into platform work: Migration trajectories and skills in Berlin's gig economy. In: Environment and planning. A, Economy and space, Jg. 56, H. 2, S. 476-490. DOI:10.1177/0308518X231191933

Abstract

"Platform labour scholars have noted the prevalence of migrant workers in the gig economy. This paper builds on this research but interrogates the broad concept of 'migrant labour'. The study draws on biographical interviews with platform workers in grocery delivery and domestic work platforms in Berlin, Germany as well as expert interviews with union representatives, migrant organisations and white-collar platform company employees. Through an examination of the mobility strategies of platform workers in this subset of the platform economy, the study reveals a stratification of migrant trajectories and of skills needed to engage in platform work across different types of labour platforms. The study finds that platform companies draw on a workforce that consists of recently arrived young migrants with comparatively high education, language skills and digital literacy. Through close analysis of an understudied section of the gig economy, the paper contributes to the ongoing theorisation of the nexus of migration regimes and platform-mediated labour regimes. The findings complicate the notion of 'accessibility' of platform work and call for the inclusion of visa regimes, immigration categories and particular skill sets in future research on platform labour." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 a Pion publication) ((en))

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PAUL, Anju Mary (2024): Unpacking cross‐country variations in domestic worker protection regimes: Adopting a policy regime perspective. In: International Labour Review, Jg. 163, H. 3, S. 377-396. DOI:10.1111/ilr.12432

Abstract

"Domestic workers are some of the most vulnerable and least protected workers in the world. However, there is significant variation in domestic worker protections across countries. Using a policy regime perspective, I unpack how differing ideas, institutional arrangements and interest groups inform differences in the degree of legal protections that a country provides domestic workers. I posit that only if all three of these building blocks are present and supportive will a country institute a strong domestic worker protection regime. I apply this model to explain the incomplete/weak domestic worker protection regimes in Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa and Sweden." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Però, Davide & John Downey (2024): Advancing Workers' Rights in the Gig Economy through Discursive Power: The Communicative Strategies of Indie Unions. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 38, H. 1, S. 140-160. DOI:10.1177/09500170221103160

Abstract

"Finding limited representation in established unions, a growing number of precarious and migrant workers of the gig economy have been turning to self-organization. Yet little is known about how these workers can compensate for their lack of material resources and institutional support and negotiate effectively with employers. Drawing on interviews, frame, and content analysis grounded in ethnographic research with the precarious and migrant workers of British ‘indie’ unions, we examine the significance of self-mediation practices in facilitating effective negotiations. We find that the effectiveness of campaigns can be enhanced by strategically integrating vibrant direct action of workers and allies with self-mediated messages, which are framed to resonate with the general public and mainstream media – a practice that we call communicative unionism. These findings extend labour movement scholarship by showing the analytical importance of considering workers’ discursive power-building practices. They also contribute to addressing social movement studies’ historical neglect of workers’ collective engagements with employers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Tarrabain, Chloe & Robyn Thomas (2024): The Dynamics of Control of Migrant Agency Workers: Over-Recruitment, 'The Bitchlist' and the Enterprising-Self. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 38, H. 1, S. 27-43. DOI:10.1177/09500170221100934

Abstract

"This article explores migrant workers’ experiences of organisational control while undertaking temporary agency work. This study is based on a ‘covert’ ethnographic study set at a temporary employment agency that short-term contracts workers to the catering and hospitality industry. The findings show how control is perceived by workers to emerge from the over-recruitment, coupled with the allocation of work through an informal ranking system. Migrant workers’ specific socio-economic circumstances and their race and gender identities informed their responses to these systems, resulting in the buy-in to discourses of enterprise. The result was actors who are complicit, if not active, participants in self and peer regulation. As such, this article contributes to the literature on enterprising-selves, control of temporary agency workers and the wider manufacturing consent literature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Wimmer, Christopher (2024): Die Marginalisierten. (Über-) Leben zwischen Mangel und Notwendigkeit. Weinheim: Juventa Verlag, 302 S.

Abstract

"Christopher Wimmer blickt nach »ganz unten«. Seine These trifft den Kern der deutschen Gegenwart: Ein - wenn nicht sogar das zentrale - Ergebnis kapitalistischer Vergesellschaftung besteht in der Marginalisierung von Menschen in sozialen, politischen und kulturellen Zusammenhängen. Wimmer zeigt, wie sich Marginalisierung konkret auswirkt. Er beschäftigt sich mit der Sozialisation der Marginalisierten und stellt daraufhin ihre Arbeitssituation, ihr Alltagsleben und ihre sozialen Beziehungen ins Zentrum. Überall dort zeigen sich Auswirkungen ihrer sozialen Position. Doch auch das Bewusstsein der Marginalisierten ist von ihrer Lage beeinflusst. All dies hat Folgen für eine Politik, die sich mit sozialer Marginalisierung auseinandersetzen will." (Verlagsangaben, IAB-Doku)

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Alderotti, Giammarco, Eleonora Mussino & Chiara Ludovica Comolli (2023): Natives' and migrants' employment uncertainty and childbearing during the great recession. A comparison between Italy and Sweden. In: European Societies, Jg. 25, H. 4, S. 539-573. DOI:10.1080/14616696.2022.2153302

Abstract

"This study contributes to the empirical research on the fertility decline registered in Europe in the aftermath of the Great Recession adopting a comparative perspective. We explore childbearing behavior during the crisis across three dimensions of vulnerability: migration background (measured as: country of origin and length of stay in the destination country), labor market uncertainty, and country of residence. We compare childbearing behavior by parity among native and migrant women with different employment statuses in Sweden and Italy. Using the Swedish population registers and the Italian Labor Force Survey, we investigate the change in childbearing probabilities between the pre-crisis (2006?2009) and the years following the onset of the crisis (2010?2015). We find that the chances of motherhood in the aftermath of the Great Recession decreased substantially among recently arrived migrant women, but also among unemployed natives and women with unstable careers. The migration and labor market vulnerabilities, however, do not accumulate: unemployment and career instability negatively affect only native women?s probability of motherhood. Finally, the country comparison demonstrates that while the duration of stay and the weaker labor market attachment reduces the chances of motherhood in both contexts, the negative effect of unemployment is particularly strong in Italy." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))