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Fears and realisations of employment insecurity

Author

Listed:
  • Andy Dickerson

    (Department of Economics, The University of Sheffield)

  • Francis Green
Abstract
We investigate the validity of subjective data on expectations of job loss and on the probability of re-employment consequent on job loss, by examining associations between expectations and realisations. We find that subjective expectations data reveal private information about subsequent realisations of both job loss and of subsequent re-employment. As predictors of subsequent job loss, the expectations data perform better with numerical descriptors than with ordinal verbal descriptors. On average, employees overestimate the chance of losing their job; while they underestimate the difficulty of finding another job as good as the currently-held one. We recommend that survey items on employment insecurity should be explicit about each risk under investigation, and utilise a cardinal probability scale with discrete numerical descriptors.

Suggested Citation

  • Andy Dickerson & Francis Green, 2009. "Fears and realisations of employment insecurity," Working Papers 2009016, The University of Sheffield, Department of Economics, revised Nov 2009.
    • Handle: RePEc:shf:wpaper:2009016
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Job insecurity; Expectations; Employability;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C81 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs - - - Methodology for Collecting, Estimating, and Organizing Microeconomic Data; Data Access
    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations
    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General
    • J6 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers

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