Structure and Dynamics of Unemployment, Atypical Employment and Low-wage Employment as a Longitudinal Analysis

Many labour market analyses concentrate on short- to medium-term issues while losing sight of more long-term phenomena. The current study highlights the structure and dynamics of unemployment, atypical employment and low-wage employment from a long-term perspective of up to twelve years. Firstly, it illustrates how such employment types proportionally affect people of employable age, and identifies the groups most strongly at risk. Secondly, it focuses on the heterogeneous careers of individuals and visualises pay patterns shaped by long spells of unemployment and low-wage employment in contrast to people who enjoy continuous full-time employment with relatively high wages and salaries. Thirdly it describes typical paths in and out of unemployment, low-wage employment and atypical employment and how personal characteristics influence the persistence and ups and downs of the labour market.