A Typology of the Unemployed by Duration and Frequency of Unemployment

The study typifies individuals affected by unemployment by their cumulated spells of joblessness, the number of their spells and the duration of the longest spell in the past five years. From this, a differentiated image is obtained of the effects of unemployment which makes for a closer perception of the scope of the marginalisation problem suffered by the unemployed. The results point to the great importance of longer spells of unemployment. Frequent alternate spells of employment and short-term unemployment are typical of unemployment in Austria. In this segment, the return to the former employer is of great significance. Younger age, low education, foreign nationality (especially Turkish) and impaired health are among the key risk factors for long-term unemployment.