5th german sino conference atypical employment in germany - recent trends and social implications
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German employment and labour reformTRANSCRIPT
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 Fußzeile 1
“Atypical” employment in Germany:
Recent trends and social implications
Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Professor for Sociology of Work and Organizations
BLE / Faculty of Business and Economics
5th German-Sino Conference on Public Administration
Berlin, 14-17th Oct. 2010
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2Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Agenda
“Atypical” employment in Germany: Recent trends and social implications
1. The traditional employment model in (Western) Germany
2. Changed economic, social, and political conditions
3. Outcomes: Recent trends of “atypical”employment in Germany
(…and in other European countries)
4. Social implications
5. Conclusions: Political responses?
Berlin, 10.11.2010
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 3Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
1. Traditional employment model in
Western Germany
A brief historical review:
1950s-60s: Specific historical conditions favouring labour
� Economic boom period in Western Germany
� Labour shortage � strengthened trade unions
� Welfare state: employment-based social security system
(Bismarckian social insurances)
� � Establishing a certain form of employment with strong
protection & social security as a „standard employment
relationship“:
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 4Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
1. Traditional employment model in
Western Germany
The „standard employment relationship“:
� permanent employment (strong dismissal protection),
based on work contract with one employer
� full-time, normally 8 hours/5 days a week
� collectively agreed, living wages: breadwinner for family
� rule of seniority: upward mobility for senior workers
� full social security: full entitlements in public insurances for
old-age, invalidity, unemployment, health care (later: long-
term care)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 5Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
1. Traditional employment model in
Western Germany
This standard employment relationship:
� is a reference model for employment in Germany:
- characteristics seen as “best practice” of labour
- social security entitlements preconditioned to this norm
� empirical reality: only for large majority of male workers
� This form of employment is complemented by a
specific family model: “male breadwinner model”
� clear division of labour: women stay at home and care for
husband and children, husband is breadwinner
� women & children are socially secured by social entitlements
of husband (not in their own right)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 6Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
2. Changing economic, social and political
conditions
Challenges to the standard employment relationship:
Since mid 1970s:
� Economy: Recession, increasing unemployment, weakened
trade unions, firms’ demand for more flexible labour contracts
and lower labour costs
� Society: birth control, expanded higher education, social
movements
� individualisation, increased female labour market
participation
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 7Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
2. Changing economic, social and political
conditions
� modernisation of family model: women in part-time
employment
� first “atypical” employment form matches both firms’
demand for flexible, low-payed work and greater female
economic independence
But: standard employment still predominating for men
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 8Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
2. Changing economic, social and political
conditions
Since end 1980s, 1990s:
� Economy: more competitive & volatile markets
(globalisation), tertiarisation (new demand for services),
increasing unemployment, firms’ demand for flexible, low-cost
labour
� Politics: collapse of European socialist countries, German
unification, public budget constraints ?
� neoliberal paradigm
� deregulation of labour market: lower dismissal
protection, strong support of flexible employment forms
Since 2000s: Lower social protection against unemployment
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 9Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
3. Recent trends of “atypical” employment
Outcomes of economic, social and political changes:
Standard employment relationship is eroding:
� empirically: decreasing shares of labour force,
though still majority of mid-aged men
� but still the reference norm in social security schemes
� raising social problems (section 4.)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 10Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
3. Recent trends of “atypical” employment
Source: Statist. Bundesamt 2008; Microcensus; sum smaller than single value because of multiple
employment in atypical forms; part time only defined as atypical if < 20 hrs.
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 11Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Different Data Base (German Socio-Economic Panel)
that includes part-time >20h:
37% of all employees “atypical“
(+12 percentage points since 1997)
• marginal employment doubled
• temporary agency work tripled
• fixed-term employment +46%
3. Recent trends of “atypical” employment
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 12Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Graph 2: Gender distribution of atypical employment 1997-2007
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007
year
em
plo
ye
es
in %
men: part-time employees < 20hrs
men: marginal employees
men: fixed-term employees
men: temporary work agency employees
women: part-time employees < 20hrs
women: marginal employees
women: fixed-term employees
women: temporary work agency employees
“Atypical work” = still mainly women’s work,
but men are catching up
Source: Statist. Bundesamt 2008; Microcensus; sum smaller than single value because of multiple
employment in atypical forms;
part time only defined as atypical if < 20 hrs.
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 13Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Microcensus Data: 38% women „atypical“, men 14%
GSOEP (incl. all part-time): 57% women, 17% men
� 1997 – 2007: share of men in atypical empl. doubled
� Young, migrant, and low-skilled people are more often
employed “atypically“
� Working hours decrease, esp. for women, more
involuntary part-time (lack of full-time jobs)
“Atypical work” = still mainly women’s work,
but men are catching up
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 14Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Huge increase in low-wage employment
Federal Republic of Germany, 1995 and 2006 in Percent
Shares of low-wage empl.
within category
Changes in
low-wage
employment
Changes total
employment
1995 2006 1995-2006 1995-2006
Full-time 11.0 14.3 +12.6% -13.5%
Part- time 22.2 23.4 +24.5% +18.0%
Marginal emp. 86.0 91.7 +181.2% +163.8%
Total 15.0 22.2 +43.3% -3.1%
Source: Kalina/Weinkopf, IAQ-Report 2008-01; SOEP
6.5 million employees work for low wages, i.e. less than two-thirds of the
median wage: West 9.61 €, Ost 6.81 € (gross wages per hour, in 2006)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 15Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Low wage employment: mainly female
More than two-thirds of the low-waged employees are
women (69%):
Low-wage shares across gender and working hours, in percent (2004)
Men Women
Full-time 10.8 21.8
Part-time 15.6 21.9
Marginal emp. 87.4 85.5
Total 12.6 29.6
Source: SOEP 2004, Kalina/Weinkopf, IAT-Report 2006-3
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 16Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Low wage sector no "springboard“: 80% of men, 90% women remain low-waged after
6 years of employment
Low upward mobility
Source: IAB-KB 8/2008
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 17Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Trends in self-employment:
Increasing
single-
person self-
employed
(without
employees)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 18Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Trends in self-employment:
� Mostly single-person self-employed (without
employees) due to different “push”- and “pull”-factors
� More often not lifelong self-employment (transitions out
of and into unemployment or dependent employment)
� Very often rather low incomes (also for highly-skilled)
� No social security coverage!
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Berlin, 10.11.2010
Atypical employment rate in Europe
1998 and 2008
19Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Source: Schmid / Protsch 2009
employees and
single person
self-employed
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 20Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
4. Social implications (Germany)
Trend towards erosion of standard employment has
problematic social implications, esp. in German
welfare system:
Certain (not all) “atypical” employment forms entail:
� low wages: no living wages, not even for individuals
� low opportunities for upward mobility and upgrading
skills
� low social security (low or no entitlements to social
insurance)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 21Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
4. Social implications
� affecting certain groups in such precarious jobs:
women, young people (also men), low-skilled,
migrants (from outside EU)
� life-course: more discontinuous employment
careers (periods of unemployment, atypical empl.)
� increasing social inequalities (“insiders / outsiders”)
and poverty risks
� increasing fears of “insiders” (middle class),
due to lowered social protection against
unemployment: threat of downward mobility
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 22Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
5. Conclusions: Political response?
Erosion of standard employment challenges the social
security system (that still refers to it as a norm)
� raising poverty � burdening public budgets
� social security system has to be re-designed:
Idea of “flexicurity”
= combine flexible labour market with social security
e.g. include all “atypical” employment forms in social insurance,
or establish better (tax-based) social security scheme,
improve transitions between different forms of employment,
un- or non-employment (transitional labour markets)
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 23Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
5. Conclusions: Political response?
“Flexicurity” idea is in the scientific debate for about
10 years,
on level of European Union also discussed as concept,
but not yet realised in most countries
Impediments: political power structures (employers’
power), public budget constraints?
Hope for future? Democratic legitimacy of governments
is eroding, but outcomes questionable?
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Berlin, 10.11.2010 24Prof. Dr. Sigrid Betzelt
Thank you for your attention!