Labor Market Analysis Research Articles

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: economic insecurity and coping strategies of Italian households

PurposeThis paper offers a contribution to the authors’ understanding of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on living conditions of Italian households. A large part of the research, analysis, comments focused on the relation between the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and income of the Italian households does not capture the extent of the current changes. The focus on the highly differentiated impacts of the pandemic on three core dimensions of social integration (the sphere of work, that of welfare and that of the family) could help the authors to grasp the current transformations.Design/methodology/approachThe research draws on Castel's distinction between three “zones” of post-Fordist employment societies with the aim to identify the processes and the conditions that carry individuals from one “zones” to the other. Theoretical considerations are supported by the findings of several qualitative and quantitative research carried out during the pandemic mainly by government agencies and international organizations as OECD and WHO. The analysis of healthcare expenditure, labour market and economic conditions of households is based on data of system of health accounts – SHA and from consumer studies undertaken by the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT). The data on the financial situation and expectations of households during the crisis used in the article were drawn from special surveys carried out by the Bank of Italy.FindingsWhat the authors observe in Italian society is not a collapse of the three pillars of social and system integration of contemporary societies: work, family and welfare. The COVID-19 pandemic has reversed two social and institutional trends, that in last two decades had damaged these spheres of life and that seemed relentless. First, what has been reversed are: the progressive privatization of welfare and the enhancement of the politics of retrenchment; second, values and styles of life, radical processes of individualization, that undermined mutual relations of support and care, and households' ability to cope with old and new risks. At the same time, the pandemic is radicalizing the long-lasting tendency towards job insecurity, a high incidence of low-paid workers and a high proportion of undeclared work. The highly differentiated impacts of the pandemic on these three spheres of life are creating a wider plurality of living conditions and risks.Social implicationsThe findings suggest that what the authors need is to reopen the debate on welfare priorities, programmes and areas of intervention, on public-private relationship that have been established in many sectors of welfare in the last decades in many European countries. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance welfare programmes capable of recognising the autonomous capacities of the family and informal relations to produce well-being, to cope with the crisis and to produce supportive relationships.Originality/valueThe pandemic highlighted that a progressive reduction of expenditure and politics of retrenchment produced welfare not able to face the needs of a large part of households. The pandemic highlighted that the changes that have taken place in the sphere of work, welfare and of the family in the last years have produced less and less governable effects.

ENGINEERING LABOUR MARKET IN CONSTRUCTION IN UKRAINE AND ABROAD

ENGINEERING LABOUR MARKET IN CONSTRUCTION IN UKRAINE AND ABROAD

Factors that affect discouragement: A South African labour market analysis

Labour markets across the world have in recent years been characterised by instability and scare employment opportunities. Despite the fact that the 21st century has carried with it massive technological change and a rise in the significance of education for better employment prospects, it has moreover brought about expanded vulnerability which has neglected to ensure employment for work-searchers. For those who want to work, the inability to find employment has been a source of enormous adversities both personally and economically. This is not unique to South Africa as the country is plagued with very high unemployment rates across all age categories and continually rising numbers of discouraged work-seekers. Although unemployment indicators have to a great extent followed international standards, the failure to incorporate those who have abstained from searching has inadvertently contributed to a lack of understanding regarding the nature of discouragement in the labour market. Keywords: Employment, discouragement; work-seekers, labour markets, South Africa, unemployment.

Gender aspect of social differentiation of population in modern Russian society: trends of manifestation and leveling measures

This article examines the gender form of division of labor as one of the vectors of analysis of social stratification of the Russian society. The goal consists in determination of the role and specificity of gender factor in the current level of differentiation, as well as in demonstration of its growing relevance in the current Russian conditions. The subject of this research is gender as a stereotype of perception and a stratification category. The study is based on the methods of systemic analysis, gender approach to the analysis of labor market, theoretical positions and methods accumulated in sectoral and cross-disciplinary field of sociology: sociology of labor, sociology of family, economic sociology, and economic anthropology. The empirical base contains the data of the Federal State Statistics Service. Secondary data analysis is applied. The quantitative and qualitative characteristics of gender asymmetry are described. The author highlights the main types and forms of discrimination against women in labor sphere. The article determines and systematizes the key factors of increase in social differentiation of population. The conducted comparative analysis of statistical data demonstrates that in modern world, gender does not lose its importance within the system of differentiating characteristics in the social structure; namely in the Russian Federation, it considerably affects the process of social stratification. The author describes relevant regulatory measures in this area.

Глобальные тенденции трансформации рынка труда

Presented is the analysis of modern labor market, forming under influence of multiple factors. The conditions of the external global challenge put the labor market in need of transformation, sometimes in contrast to the economically rational distribution of the labor factor and with the depreciation of the social significance of the use of labor resources. Inequality and the widespread deficit of decent work lead not only to economic inefficiencies, but also to a decline in social cohesion within countries. At the same time, the main goals of the strategic development of the labor market, such as: full employment and an increase in the standard of living, remain significant, and it is necessary to direct the efforts of governments, workers, employers and their associations. The emerging global trends of the world labor market pose a number of problematic issues for solving both at the level of national markets and on the world labor market together with international organizations in the framework of the global dialogue. The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the existing features of the distribution of labor and employment at the level of the world labor market, with the justification of such trends that are significant for issues of modern optimization of labor use, such as decent work, underemployment, structural unemployment, gender asymmetry, professional segregation, structural inflation, youth segment of labor market. All the phenomena under consideration are of a pronounced character both on the world and national labor market and require additional theoretical understanding and empirical assessment.

Labor Markets in Crisis: The Double Liability of Low-Wage Work During COVID-19.

We adopt a novel identification strategy to examine the heterogeneous effects of Canada’s COVID‐19 economic shutdown on hours worked across the earnings distribution. Early labor‐market analyses found that workers in the bottom of the earnings distribution experienced a much larger reduction in hours worked than workers in the top of the earnings distribution. Our analysis reveals a double liability of low‐wage work during Canada’s COVID‐19 economic shutdown: while workers in every quintile experienced a large reduction in hours on average, significant increases in hours were only present among workers in the bottom quintile. Implications for crisis income supports are discussed.

Economic Indicators of Labor Market and Governmental Policies to be Taken for Their Improvement: The Case of Albania

In this study, we are focused on the analysis of labor market based on economic indicators such as employment, unemployment, and participation in the labor force by trimester data of year 2018 and 2019. Such data have been provided by INSTAT (Institute of Statistics, Albania) publications related to employment rate, unemployment of the population and participation in labor forces in accordance with age group and gender, and after their being elaborated and analyzed, the relevant conclusions have been drawn. In our work, we have used the descriptive method, based in comparative analysis expressed in percentage in relation to economic indicators that we have used in our study. The descriptive analysis is also focused on the interpretation of charts and graphics relying on comparative analysis of age group and gender by trimester and annual change. This study’s purpose mainly aims to show the trimester and annual change for economic indicators that we have taken into study such as employment and unemployment rate and participation in labor forces. The difference between these trimester and annual indicators has been taken in analysis by analyzing the average degree of the respective changes. This study also aims to determine which are some measurements and governmental policies that must be undertaken to improve such economic indicators.

Does deregulation decrease unemployment? An empirical analysis of the Spanish labour market

AbstractSpain underwent two major labour reforms in 2010 and 2012 under the assumption that deregulating the labour market and decentralizing collective bargaining would automatically reduce unemployment (deregulation hypothesis). This article highlights the impact of demand and the sectoral structure of the economy to explain the behaviour of this variable (structural hypothesis). Analysing subnational panel data, the authors assess the capacity of these two hypotheses to explain unemployment trends. Their results cast doubt on the deregulation hypothesis and indicate the importance of cyclical and structural factors.

Health labour markets: an overview of some human factors that influence demand and supply

Abstract Background The global demand for health workers is expected to double by 2030 and it is estimated that if need is taken into account, there will be a deficit as high as 18 million according to the World Health Organization's Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health: Workforce 2030. Combined with inequities in the access to qualified health workers, this impedes progress towards the achievement of universal health coverage, global health security and the SDGs. This paper addresses health labour market deficiencies. It aims to provide guidance for a comprehensive analysis of health labour market dynamics, including the political and social factors that, in addition to economic ones influence the behaviour of health workers and of employers. Methods This paper uses the material of the WHO Health Labour Market Analysis Guidebook, which is based on the most recent literature on the demand and supply of health workers and on factors that affect them. It also draws from empirical analysis conducted recently by WHO in four regions of the world. Results On the supply side, the paper illustrates how social norms, such as those related to gender, influence the decision to become a health professional, the choice of a specialty, the choice of a practice location, and labour market participation. As to demand, examples are given of how professional interest groups' political actions (councils, trade unions) influence the division of tasks and which types of jobs will be offered. Conclusions The analysis of the dynamics of health labour markets must include human factors to achieve a better understanding of the forces that drive health worker shortages and surpluses, skills-mix and geographical imbalances, and suboptimal performance and to develop effective policies to address these issues.

TRANSFORMAÇÕES NO MUNDO DO TRABALHO E POLÍTICA PÚBLICA EDUCACIONAL NO BRASIL

O presente artigo objetiva questionar a proposta de investimento em capital humano como uma solução para o iminente desemprego estrutural decorrente da adoção das novas tecnologias da robótica e da inteligência artificial publicada em 2018 pelo Banco Mundial. Tendo por base (1) a análise empírica do mercado de trabalho brasileiro a partir da perspectiva da evolução das credenciais educacionais da classe trabalhadora, (2) os impactos das novas tecnologias sobre o trabalho e (3) os desafios decorrentes das metamorfoses vivenciadas pela classe-que-vive-do-trabalho, o artigo conclui ser oportuna a reflexão sobre uma alternativa de política pública educacional que tenha por propósito o desenvolvimento de uma compreensão crítica da sociedade brasileira, levando em consideração não apenas a formação para o trabalho, mas, também para a atuação social e política.

The Deterioration of the Spanish Youth Labour Market (1985–2015): An Interdisciplinary Case Study

The Spanish labour market is notorious for its high unemployment rate and its exceptionally high youth unemployment rate, job insecurity, impermanence and underemployment. This article presents a systematic analysis of the Spanish labour market’s deterioration process, in particular focusing on the youth labour market. It combines historic reviews with statistical analyses of data from official sources, like the Continuous Sample of Working Lives (CSWL), through different econometric models. The procedure consists of three steps: (a) first, a historical estimation to facilitate the systematic selection of the statistics, in this case contracts taken from a large sample of the Spanish workforce over the period 1985–2015; (b) econometric modelling of relevant indicators, in this case the average annual income, daily working hours and average length of contract; and (c) an analysis of the identified trends and conjuncture regarding precarious work and gender inequality.

The political constitution of labour from Donovan to Blair

AbstractThis article looks at changing patterns of labour regulation over the last 50 years ago. We begin with the contribution of the ‘Oxford School’ within industrial relations analysis and its influence on the Donovan Royal Commission. We then discuss the architecture of the British corporate state and the approach of successive Conservative administrations between 1979 and 1997. Next, we consider labour market analysis and interventions under New Labour alongside emerging European influences and rights‐based models of justice. We conclude with some final comments regarding contemporary labour market thinking.

Potential and prospect analysis of labor market in education in the fields of renewable energy engineering, industrial automation and robotics, and automotive engineering

The large number of graduate graduates who work not in accordance with the competence and rapid industrial revolution that occurred, demanding the implementation of higher education that is competent and relevant to the course of national development now and for the future. This paper will present the results of research on the prospects and employment potential of graduates of vocational education in the fields of renewable energy (RE), industrial automation and robotics (IAR) and automotive engineering (AE) in the industrial era 4.0 and driving technology. The aim of this research is to obtain a picture of the feasibility of developing the organization of vocational education in RE, IAR and AE study programs at the Faculty of Technology and Vocational Education (FPTK) Bandung Indonesia Education University. The research method used in this research is descriptive qualitative method. Data collection is done by studying and discussing; student interests and teacher conditions in 10 vocational high schools in the Bandung and Cimahi regions; the views of academics, appraisers of professional certification bodies and study of government policy program documentation in the development of study programs (RE, IAR and AE). From the results of the analysis and focus group discussions it was concluded that the three RE, IAR and AE study programs in the West Java region in particular and generally nationally feasible to be built in FPTK, its existence has a strategic position, prospects and potential for a wide open user market for graduates of third education these fields (RE, IAR and RE) work in the industrial, business and educational institutions.

Labor market analysis through transformations and robust multivariate models

The work presents a robust approach to labor share analysis. The estimate of labor share presents various complexities related to the nature of the data sets to be analyzed. Typically, labor share is evaluated by using discriminant analysis and linear or generalized linear models, that do not take into account the presence of possible outliers. Moreover, the variables to be considered are often characterized by a high dimensional structure. The proposed approach has the objective of improving the estimation of the model using robust multivariate regression techniques and data transformation.

Education, Competences - Labor Market Analysis Against the Challenges of Industry 4.0 Economy

Abstract Building a strong economy depends on numerous factors: technological, political, geographical but also and above all social ones. Currently, the ongoing fourth industrial revolution is primarily based on digitization of all processes in the conducted activities. The acquisition and processing of vast amount of data generates information which is very complex and not always unambiguous. Industry 4.0 also assumes that employees will understand both technical needs and those not related to the production process. This means that the present education system (definitely the one related to technical science) should also be changed so that engineers acquire more managerial skills. The article presents the educational assumptions in the face of challenges posed by Industry 4.0 in the context of the current opportunities of the labor market and education in Poland and in Europe.

Potential of development of the professional (technical and vocational) educational services market in Ukraine

Potential of development of the professional (technical and vocational) educational services market in Ukraine

Labour Market Analysis

The paper analyses employment issues in the Southern Urals. The problem of detecting the most promising occupations in terms of employment is handled. Special job posting sites for the period of two years have been studied to solve the task set. Market demand has been analysed. ABC analysis for the number of job vacancies have been performed. On-fire occupations have been detected. The best paid occupations have also been identified. Demand dynamics of the labour market, as well as the proposed salary trend are given. The number of vacancies in the spheres with high salary level has been analysed. Comparative analysis results of the labour market in 2017 and 2018 are studied. An attempt to connect the demand for certain training programmes of higher educational institutions with the demand in the labour market has been made.

Her Voice: Engaging and Preparing Girls With Disabilities for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Careers

Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) related fields comprise the top 30 occupations expected to grow the fastest by 2026. This increase in job opportunities, coupled with the evolution of technology, is creating higher demands for diversity in the labor market. Currently all student require innovative training and support from a young age to pursue STEM careers successfully. However, women and girls with disabilities face unique barriers along the STEM education pipeline. In this paper, we report the current and projected labor market trends inthe United States. We then consider how this labor market information can be used by elementary educators to engage girls with disabilities in STEM-related learning effectively. Finally, through our analysis of labor market needs and the available assessment and intervention literature, we present a science-informed framework for intervention.

Labor market analysis in the innovation-investment model of economic growth

В умовах сьогодення особливої актуальності набувають проблеми ефективної зайнятості населення та створення ринку робочої сили, запобігання масового безробіття й міграції і потребують постійного аналізу та моніторингу. У статті з використанням матеріалів державної статистичної звітності України розглянуто ситуацію, що склалася у сучасних умовах на ринку праці України за останні роки. Досліджено основні показники функціонування ринку праці, такі як показники економічно активного населення України, а саме у віці 15–70 років та працездатний вік окремо. Проаналізовано показники зайнятого населення України. Проведено дослідження зайнятого населення за видами економічної діяльності: сільське, лісове та рибне господарство; промисловість; будівництво; оптова та роздрібна торгівля, ремонт автотранспортних засобів і мотоциклів; транспорт, складське господарство, поштова та кур’єрська діяльність; тимчасове розміщування й організація харчування; інформація та телекомунікації; фінансова та страхова діяльність; операції з нерухомим майном; професійна, наукова та технічна діяльність; діяльність у сфері адміністративного та допоміжного обслуговування; державне управління й оборона, обов’язкове соціальне страхування; освіта; охорона здоров’я та надання соціальної допомоги; мистецтво, спорт, розваги та відпочинок; інші види економічної діяльності. Проаналізовано рівень безробіття в Україні порівняно з показниками попередніх років та показниками деяких країн Європейського Союзу. Виявлено основні підстави стверджувати про підвищення його ефективності протягом останніх років: підвищення рівня економічної активності та рівня зайнятості населення, зниження рівня безробіття, зменшення диспропорції між попитом на робочу силу та її пропозицією, збільшення навантаження зареєстрованих безробітних на одне вільне робоче місце, що пояснюється зниженням темпів трудової міграції, та хоч і не значним, та все ж підвищенням реальної заробітної плати.

Молодіжний ринок праці Естонії: безробіття та міграційні настрої студентської молоді

This article presents an analysis of current processes in the youth labour market in the context of their impact on the student youth migration sentiments with a focus on the case of Estonia. Nowadays, student migration takes new forms, which are determined by objective and subjective factors and need to be conceptualized. They are characterized by complicated socio-economic interactions and social relations, so the analysis is based not only on statistics but also on the results of a survey of student youth conducted in November-December 2019. The analysis of the youth labour market in Estonia revealed the relationship between unemployment and education levels and some trends in the unemployment dynamics. This made it possible to identify key processes, such as spread of circular and chain migration, an increasing intensity of migration flow, transition to positive values of net migration. The analysis confirmed that Estonia’s accession to the EU had a positive effect on the youth labour market, and the improvement of the socio-economic situation in the country was the main reason for growing migration flow of young people from abroad. The identification of migration sentiments of student youth is based on the analysis of factors that push them from the country of origin and pull to the countries of possible migration. Countries that are the most attractive for Estonian students in terms of education and employment have been identified, including ones with a positive image for immigration, high wage level and favourable working conditions. It is determined that the migration aspirations of the respondents are quite high. The migratory attitudes of student youth towards permanent migration are analysed in relation to the education of parents and the level of foreign language proficiency.