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The Ins and Outs of Involuntary Part-time Employment

Author

Listed:
  • Daniel Borowczyk-Martins

    (Copenhagen Business School & IZA)

  • Etienne Lale

    (University of Quebec in Montreal, CIRANO & IZA)

Abstract

We develop an adjustment procedure to construct U.S. monthly time series of involuntary part-time employment stocks and flows from 1976 until today. Armed with these new data, we provide a comprehensive account of the dynamics of involuntary part-time work. Transitions from full-time to involuntary part-time employment dominate this dynamics, spiking up at recessions’ onsets and persisting well into recovery periods. Weaknesses in job creation, on the other hand, contribute little to these fluctuations. Our data and findings are relevant to inform a broader assessment of labor market performance and to develop models of cyclical labor adjustment.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel Borowczyk-Martins & Etienne Lale, 2020. "The Ins and Outs of Involuntary Part-time Employment," Working Papers 20-16, Chair in macroeconomics and forecasting, University of Quebec in Montreal's School of Management.
  • Handle: RePEc:bbh:wpaper:20-16
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    4. Houari, Oussama, 2022. "Uncertainty shocks and business cycles in the US: New insights from the last three decades," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
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    6. Hirokazu Mizobata, 2024. "Japan’s dual labor market and its macroeconomic characteristics," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 67(1), pages 165-196, July.
    7. Bransch, Felix & Malik, Samreen & Mihm, Benedikt, 2024. "The cyclicality of on-the-job search," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. Devesh Roy & Sunil Saroj & Mamata Pradhan, 2022. "Nature of employment and outcomes for urban labor: evidence from the latest labor force surveys in India," Indian Economic Review, Springer, vol. 57(1), pages 165-221, June.
    9. Martin Biewen & Bernd Fitzenberger & Jakob de Lazzer, 2018. "The role of employment interruptions and part-time work for the rise in wage inequality," IZA Journal of Labor Economics, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-34, December.
    10. Liliana Cuccu & Vicente Royuela & Sergio Scicchitano, 2023. ""Navigating the Precarious Path: Understanding the Dualisation of the Italian Labour Market through the Lens of Involuntary Part-Time Employment"," IREA Working Papers 202314, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Oct 2023.
    11. Chassamboulli, Andri & Fontaine, Idriss & Gálvez-Iniesta, Ismael & Gomes, Pedro, 2024. "Immigration and labour market flows," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    12. Congregado, Emilio & Garcia-Clemente, Javier & Rubino, Nicola & Vilchez, Inmaculada, 2023. "Testing hysteresis for the US and UK involuntary part-time employment," MPRA Paper 118115, University Library of Munich, Germany.
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    14. Alex Gymnopoulos & Thanos Poulakis & Haris Poulakis & Nikolaos Chatzarakis, 2021. "Investigating the Greek Unemployment from a Classical Perspective," Bulletin of Political Economy, Bulletin of Political Economy, vol. 15(1), pages 69-91, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Involuntary part-time employment; Unemployment; Labor market flows; Business cycles.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

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