European Sociological Review - current issue

Flexible Employment and Inequality in Europe

Barbieri, P. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:18 PST

Socio-economic Risks of Atypical Employment Relationships: Evidence from the German Labour Market

Giesecke, J. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:18 PST

In this article, I examine the impact of atypical working arrangements on both objective and subjective dimensions of social inequality. The analysed types of atypical employment are fixed-term contracts, temporary agency work, and part-time employment, respectively. It is argued that these working arrangements are not homogeneous with respect to their socio-economic consequences, because they modify different aspects of the standard employment relationship. In order to investigate the effects of these types of employment, I use data from the German Socio-Economic Panel 2001–2005 on non-self-employed respondents. The results show that fixed-term contracts and agency work (being forms of external flexibility) have more severe negative socio-economic consequences than part-time employment (being a form of internal flexibility). Given that weak labour market groups face an increased risk of holding temporary jobs, the empirical findings clearly indicate the substantial impact of atypical employment on the extent and the structure of social inequality.

The Effects of Non-Employment in Early Work-Life on Subsequent Employment Chances of Individuals in The Netherlands

Luijkx, R., Wolbers, M. H. J. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

In this article, the effects of non-employment in early work-life on subsequent employment chances of individuals in the Netherlands are examined. A main concern is whether the experience of non-employment in the beginning of the career (permanently) damages a worker's later employment opportunities (that is, the likelihood of exit out of and re-entry into employment). The empirical analysis is based on five retrospective life-history surveys collected in the Netherlands in the period 1992–2003, with full information on employment histories of individuals. The analytic sample consists of 7,761 respondents, who left education since the 1950s. The results of the empirical analysis first of all show that the duration of non-employment in the first 3 years after leaving education (and not the number of non-employment spells in that period) increases the likelihood of exiting employment in the subsequent time period (up until 15 years after leaving education). This finding holds for both men and women. Second, a negative duration effect of non-employment on the likelihood of re-entering employment after a job loss is found, but for men only. These results imply that non-employment in early work-life indeed has a scarring effect on subsequent employment chances of individuals in the Dutch labour market.

Fixed-Term Contracts at Labour Market Entry in West Germany: Implications for Job Search and First Job Quality

Gebel, M. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

Fixed-term contracts have become very relevant in the transition from school to work. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) for the period 1984–2006, this article analyses differences in the timing of receiving a fixed-term contract or a permanent contract throughout the duration of first-job search and whether fixed-term contracts are associated with lower initial wages. Competing risk duration models reveal that school leavers initially receive more often permanent contracts but that a certain proportion also accepts temporary jobs. For transitions to both fixed-term and permanent contracts, we find that the longer the time spent searching for a job, the lower the transition probability to a job. The negative duration dependence effect is even more pronounced for fixed-term employment. Comparing labour market entrants with similar individual and job characteristics using propensity score matching techniques show that entrants earn significantly less in fixed-term jobs compared to permanent employment. Wage penalties are slightly larger for those who actually choose fixed-term contracts in their first job, whereas randomly allocated job entrants would suffer lower wage losses. Especially graduates from tertiary education suffer high initial wage losses in fixed-term contracts.

Labour Market Flexibilization and its Consequences in Italy

Barbieri, P., Scherer, S. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

Labor market ‘flexibilization’ or ‘deregulation’ is seen by many as a requirement for economic and occupational growth. As one route towards more flexibility, many European countries increased the so-called atypical or non-standard forms of employment while leaving the regulation of existing employment relations largely unchanged. In Italy, this led to a strong segmentation of the labour market. As employment is the only connection to a series of welfare entitlements, this praxis might lead to strong cleavages in the society. In this paper, we investigate the ongoing process of labour market ‘flexibilization’ and its consequences for individual labour market careers and social inequalities and ask whether the deregulation has fulfilled the expectations attached to it. In detail, we study the entries into the marginal labour market and the consequences for employment careers of these forms of ‘new’ flexible employment. Empirical findings based on Indagine Longitudinale sulle Famiglie Italiane data cast doubts on the effectiveness of the specific form of market deregulation in Italy and confirm strong long-term implications of atypical employment episodes for career chances.

Ethnic Residential Segregation, Social Contacts, and Anti-Minority Attitudes in European Societies

Semyonov, M., Glikman, A. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

Ethnic residential segregation has long been viewed as a major structural mechanism through which ethnic and racial minorities are denied equal access to opportunities, rewards, and amenities. Residential segregation also decreases opportunities for establishment and development of social ties and contacts between members of ethnic minorities and members of the majority population. This article examines the complex inter-relations between ethnic residential segregation, inter-ethnic social contacts and attitudes toward minorities within the context of European societies. It specifically examines the following hypotheses: first, ethnic residential segregation (i.e. residence in homogeneous all-European neighbourhoods) restricts opportunities for establishment and development of inter-ethnic social contacts; second, positive inter-ethnic contacts are likely to reduce anti-minority attitudes (i.e. perception of threat and social distance); and third, contact mediates the relations between the ethnic composition of neighbourhood of residence and anti-minority attitudes. Using data from the 2003 European Social Survey for 21 European countries a series of multi-level regression models are estimated to examine the hypotheses within a cross-national comparative framework. Although the findings generally support the theoretical expectations, they also underscore the complex ways in which patterns of ethnic residential segregation affect attitudes toward minority populations through inter-ethnic contacts. Explanations for the findings are offered and discussed in light of the theoretical expectations presented at the outset of this article.

Learning to Trust: Networks Effects Through Time

Barrera, D., van de Bunt, G. G. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

This article investigates the effects of information originating from social networks on the development of interpersonal trust relations in the context of a dialysis department of a Dutch medium-sized hospital. Hypotheses on learning effects are developed from existing theories and tested using longitudinal data concerning the complete networks of trust and (informal) communication relations among employees observed at four different time points. The results support the existence of a learning mechanism operating both within dyads and through the social networks in which the dyads are embedded: actors learn to trust (or distrust) each other from their own past experience as well as from information that they receive from colleagues with whom they have regular communication.

United But Divided: Welfare Regimes and the Level and Variance in Public Support for Redistribution

Jaeger, M. M. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST

Previous studies find little evidence that welfare regimes affect public support for welfare state principles, policies, and programmes in any systematic way. This article argues that limitations in operational definitions of welfare regimes might explain why previous studies do not find any link between regimes and attitudes. Furthermore, the article suggests that welfare regimes should affect both mean levels of support for the welfare state and the variance in attitudes. The article develops a new conceptualization of welfare regimes based on a set of regime-type indicators measured at the country-level and latent variables models. My empirical analysis of support for redistribution across 15 countries suggests that the regime rank order (low to high) with respect to support for redistribution is Liberal, Social Democratic, and Conservative. The regime rank order with respect to the variance in support for redistribution is Liberal, Conservative, and Social Democratic. My findings give rise to a simple two-dimensional typology of regime differences in support for redistribution.

Sebastian Sattler: Plagiate in Hausarbeiten. Erklarungsmodelle mit Hilfe der Rational Choice Theorie.

Stocke, V. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:12:19 PST