The Role of Unemployment in the Rise in Alternative Work Arrangements

The share of U.S. workers in alternative work arrangements has increased substantially in recent decades. Micro longitudinal analyses show that unemployed workers are much more likely to transition into alternative work arrangements than other workers. Macro time-series evidence shows that weak labo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe American economic review Vol. 107; no. 5; pp. 388 - 392
Main Authors Katz, Lawrence F., Krueger, Alan B.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Nashville American Economic Association 01.05.2017
Subjects
Alternatives
Economic crises
Educational attainment
Employment
Flexible hours
Identifiers
Income inequality
INCOME INEQUALITY AND INCOME RISK IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Inequality
Labor force surveys
Labor market
Self employment
Time series
Unemployed people
Unemployment
Unemployment rates
Work
Work life programs
Workers
Workforce
United States > US
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Summary:The share of U.S. workers in alternative work arrangements has increased substantially in recent decades. Micro longitudinal analyses show that unemployed workers are much more likely to transition into alternative work arrangements than other workers. Macro time-series evidence shows that weak labor market conditions lead to an increase in non-traditional work. But the estimated magnitudes imply that the Great Recession and high unemployment in the 2000s can account for only a modest part of the rise in alternative work. Secular factors associated with rising inequality and technological changes making it easier to contract out work appear to be the driving forces.
ISSN:0002-8282
1944-7981
DOI:10.1257/aer.p20171092