Unofficial Sector Research Articles

Young People and Flexibility of the Labour Market: The Willingness of Unemployed Finnish Young People towards Flexible Employment

The aim of the study was to find out in what ways young people are willing to be flexible about their work conditions in order to get a job. Attitudes towards flexibility were studied using cluster analysis and data from a survey of young unemployed Finns. The results revealed three significant components of labour market flexibility: contractual flexibility, mobility and unofficial employment. Contractual flexibility meant that a young person agreed on his/her work conditions directly with the employer. Mobility characterized willingness to change residence or even country in order to get a job. Unofficial employment implied the possibility to be employed in the unofficial sector. The pay in this case would be more than the unemployment benefit but less than minimum wages. Half of the respondents took a positive stand to all three components of flexibility. There was also, however, a minority with a negative attitude. These were usually older persons with long work experience. Greater flexibility would compel them to give up many acquired benefits. The conclusion of the study was that those young people who had no benefits to lose were most flexible. Those who had acquired good benefits had strong negative attitudes towards flexibility.