The development of labour market mobility and employment stability in the transition from an industrial to a service society

Abstract

"In the transition from an industrial society to a service society, changes must be expected, especially on the labour market. A number of authors assume that these changes are reflected above all in an increasingly external-numerical flexibilisation, which influences the events on the labour market in the form of a generally increased labour market mobility and decreasing employment stability ('turbo labour market'). The paper examines the thesis of an increasing significance of the external-numerical flexibility with the aid of simple, descriptive procedures based on the panel data of the IAB employment sample for the labour market of western Germany for the years 1976 to 1995. Here it is shown that there is no question of generally increasing accelerated labour market dynamics, but that labour market mobility has been stagnating if not even slightly declining since the 1970s; in addition to this the stability of employment relationships is not decreasing over time - as was perhaps to be expected- but is increasing; also unemployment is not increasingly becoming the 'normal case' in workers' careers - in spite of unemployment figures that are rising in absolute terms. Finally the paper does not only refute the thesis of the 'turbo labour market'; scepticism about the opposing thesis of the increasingly sclerotic labour market seems to be appropriate. For concentrating mainly on the development of external-numerical flexibility all too easily obscures the view of alternative strategies implemented by firms to increase flexibility. A fixed framework for industrial relations alone is not a sign of a labour market that is unable to adapt. It is more the case that the findings presented in this paper are to be interpreted in connection with a growing internal flexibilisation of Germany's firms." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Erlinghagen, M. (2002): Die Entwicklung von Arbeitsmarktmobilität und Beschäftigungsstabilität im Übergang von der Industrie- zur Dienstleistungsgesellschaft. Eine deskriptive Analyse des westdeutschen Arbeitsmarktes zwischen 1976 und 1995 auf Basis der IAB-Beschäftigtenstichprobe. In: Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Vol. 35, No. 1, p. 74-89.