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Employment risk and job-seeker performance:

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  • Godlonton, Susan

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between employment risk and job-seeker performance. To induce exogenous variation in employment risk, the outside options for job seekers undergoing a real recruitment process were randomized by assigning them a 0, 1, 5, 50, 75, or 100 percent chance of real alternative employment of the same duration and wage as the jobs for which they were applying. The findings show that job-seeker performance is highest and effort is lowest among those assigned the lowest employment risk (a guaranteed alternative job), and performance is lowest and effort highest among those facing the highest employment risk (those without any job guarantee). Moreover, a nonlinear relationship exists between employment risk and performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Godlonton, Susan, 2014. "Employment risk and job-seeker performance:," IFPRI discussion papers 1332, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    • Handle: RePEc:fpr:ifprid:1332
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    Cited by:

    1. Susan Godlonton, 2020. "Employment Exposure: Employment and Wage Effects in Urban Malawi," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 68(2), pages 471-506.
    2. Häberli, Christian, 2016. "An International Regulatory Framework for National Employment Policies," Papers 963, World Trade Institute.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Labor; Markets; Economics; Labor market; employment risk; performance; recruitment; randomized controlled trials; stress;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • J00 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - General
    • M51 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Firm Employment Decisions; Promotions

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