Gender inequalities in the initial labour market experience of young Europeans

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate gender differences in employment status trajectories of young Europeans during their initial labour market experience, and the way in which they are affected by some labour market institutions. Design/methodology/approach The empirical analysis is based on EU-SILC longitudinal data (waves 2006–2012), and focusses on young people aged 16–34. Monthly information on self-declared employment statuses for 36 months is used to define “employment status trajectories”. Young people are observed in two different phases: the first three years after leaving education (first phase) and a three-year window, starting around four years after the end of education (2nd phase). Multinomial logit models are used to estimate the probability of following different trajectory types as a function of individual characteristics, macroeconomic conditions and institutional indicators. Findings Results show that, in the first phase, women and men face on average the same difficulties in entering the labour market. When controlling for the presence of children, non-mothers have higher chances than men to enter rapidly and successfully into the labour market, whereas young mothers have the same chances. In contrast, in the second phase women experience more fragmented pathways than men, even if they do not have children. A less stringent regulation on dismissals of employees with regular contracts could enhance women’s employment opportunities in the school-to-work transition, but it would have detrimental effects for both men and women in the subsequent years. On the contrary, a more stringent regulation on the use of temporary contracts would have beneficial effects for women, with no adverse effects for men. Originality/value The paper contributes to the literature in several ways. First, it takes a broader perspective on youth labour market integration by considering two phases of individuals’ initial working life. Second, it combines an explicit attention to the first “significant” employment experience with a focus on individual trajectories, by adopting a new method to group trajectories. Third, it shows how the effects of labour market institutions vary by gender, highlighting the importance of considering gender-specific consequences when discussing or adopting labour market reforms.

The wage gap in Spain for temporary workers: the effects of the Great Recession

“…Temporary workers are mainly men, younger than 30, less educated, not having a position of responsibility, working in the public sector and in a firm with more than 50 employees. As Berloffa et al (2019), we also find gender differences, in particular, women are more likely to be hired with a permanent contract than men.…”

Stuck at a crossroads? The duration of the Italian school-to-work transition

“…Other studies have paid attention to specific aspects connected with the transition. For example, Brunetti and Corsini (2019) analysed European countries by looking at the effect on the duration of the STWT of vocational studies, while Berloffa et al (2019) focused on gender inequality in the first three years of the STWT experience. Another relevant contribution to the literature is from Manacorda et al (2017), who examined the differences in the STWT experiences connected with the attainment of the first job and of the first stable job for a selection of about 30 developing countries.…”

Self-Rated Health and Psychological Distress among Emerging Adults in Italy: A Comparison between Data on University Students, Young Workers and Working Students Collected through the 2005 and 2013 National Health Surveys

“…Students showed the lowest median age (22 vs. 26 years for both workers and student workers), which suggested a delayed entry into a career. It would be interesting to explore if young Italians experience the same age and sex-based trajectories in the initial labor market experienced by other young Europeans [ 42 ].…”