IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/unu/wpaper/wp-2014-115.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

South African Labour Market Transitions During the Global Financial and Economic Crisis: Micro-Level Evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Dennis Essers

Abstract

This paper studies individual-level labour market transitions and their determinants in South Africa during the zenith and aftermath of the global financial and economic crisis using 2008 to 2010-2011 panel data from the National Income Dynamics Study and matched cross-sections of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey over 2008Q1-2012Q4. We uncover considerable movement in South African labour markets over the crisis period. Chances of continued employment vary along gender, age and education levels and between different occupations and sectors.

Suggested Citation

  • Dennis Essers, 2014. "South African Labour Market Transitions During the Global Financial and Economic Crisis: Micro-Level Evidence," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2014-115, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2014-115
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/wp2014-115.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kingdon, Geeta & Knight, John, 2006. "The measurement of unemployment when unemployment is high," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 13(3), pages 291-315, June.
    2. Abhijit Banerjee & Sebastian Galiani & Jim Levinsohn & Zoë McLaren & Ingrid Woolard, 2008. "Why has unemployment risen in the New South Africa?1," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 16(4), pages 715-740, October.
    3. Verick, Sher., 2010. "Unravelling the impact of the global financial crisis on the South African labour market," ILO Working Papers 994541013402676, International Labour Organization.
    4. Cho, Yoonyoung & Newhouse, David, 2013. "How Did the Great Recession Affect Different Types of Workers? Evidence from 17 Middle-Income Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 31-50.
    5. Kim B. Clark & Lawrence H. Summers, 1981. "Demographic Differences in Cyclical Employment Variation," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 16(1), pages 61-79.
    6. Dani Rodrik, 2008. "Understanding South Africa's economic puzzles," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 16(4), pages 769-797, October.
    7. Aron, Janine & Kahn, Brian & Kingdon, Geeta (ed.), 2009. "South African Economic Policy under Democracy," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199551460.
    8. Kucera, David & Roncolato, Leanne & von Uexkull, Erik, 2012. "Trade Contraction and Employment in India and South Africa during the Global Crisis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(6), pages 1122-1134.
    9. repec:ilo:ilowps:454101 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Kingdon, Geeta Gandhi & Knight, John, 2004. "Unemployment in South Africa: The Nature of the Beast," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 391-408, March.
    11. Hilary Hoynes & Douglas L. Miller & Jessamyn Schaller, 2012. "Who Suffers during Recessions?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 26(3), pages 27-48, Summer.
    12. Leung, Ron & Stampini, Marco & Vencatachellum, Désiré, 2009. "Does Human Capital Protect Workers against Exogenous Shocks? South Africa in the 2008-2009 Crisis," IZA Discussion Papers 4608, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    13. Helene Maisonnave & Margaret Chitiga & Bernard Decaluwé & Ramos Mabugu & Véronique Robichaud & Debra Shepherd & Servaas Van der Berg & Dieter Von Fintel, 2015. "The Impact of the International Economic Crisis on Child Poverty in South Africa," Poverty & Public Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 7(2), pages 176-199, June.
    14. Rasmus Heltberg & Naomi Hossain & Anna Reva, 2012. "Living through Crises : How the Food, Fuel, and Financial Shocks Affect the Poor," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6013, December.
    15. James Heintz & Dorrit Posel, 2008. "Revisiting Informal Employment And Segmentation In The South African Labour Market," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 76(1), pages 26-44, March.
    16. World Bank, 2012. "World Development Report 2013 [Rapport sur le développement dans le monde 2013]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 11843, December.
    17. Murray Leibbrandt & Arden Finn & Ingrid Woolard, 2012. "Describing and decomposing post-apartheid income inequality in South Africa," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 19-34, March.
    18. Paul L. Cichello & Gary S. Fields & Murray Leibbrandt, 2005. "Earnings and Employment Dynamics for Africans in Post-apartheid South Africa: A Panel Study of KwaZulu-Natal1," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 14(2), pages 143-190, June.
    19. Caroline Harper & Nicola Jones & Paola Pereznieto & Andy McKay, 2011. "Promoting Children's Well‐being: Policy Lessons from Past and Present Economic Crises," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 29, pages 621-641, September.
    20. World Bank & International Monetary Fund, 2009. "Global Monitoring Report 2009 : A Development Emergency," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 2625, December.
    21. Sher Verick, 2012. "Giving up Job Search during a Recession: The Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on the South African Labour Market-super- †," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 21(3), pages 373-408, June.
    22. World Bank, 2012. "World Development Report 2012 [Rapport sur le développement dans le monde 2012]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 4391, December.
    23. Paul Cichello & Murray Leibbrandt & Ingrid Woolard, 2012. "Labour Market: Analysis of the NIDS Wave 1 and 2 Datasets," SALDRU Working Papers 78, Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town.
    24. Taryn Dinkelman, 2004. "How Household Context Affects Search Outcomes Of The Unemployed In Kwazulu‐Natal, South Africa," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 72(3), pages 484-521, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Essers, Dennis, 2013. "South African labour market transitions during the global financial and economic crisis: Micro-level evidence from the NIDS panel and matched QLFS cross-sections," IOB Working Papers 2013.12, Universiteit Antwerpen, Institute of Development Policy (IOB).
    2. Johannes Fedderke, 2012. "The Cost of Rigidity: The Case of the South African Labor Market," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 54(4), pages 809-842, December.
    3. Vincent Dadam & Nicola Viegi, 2021. "Estimating a New Keynesian Wage Phillips Curve," Working Papers 202107, University of Pretoria, Department of Economics.
    4. Andrew Kerr & Martin Wittenberg & Jairo Arrow, 2014. "Job Creation and Destruction in South Africa," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 82(1), pages 1-18, March.
    5. John Knight, 2021. "A Tale of Two Countries and Two Stages: South Africa, China and the Lewis Model," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 89(2), pages 143-172, June.
    6. Rahul Anand & Siddharth Kothari & Naresh Kumar, 2016. "South Africa: Labor Market Dynamics and Inequality," IMF Working Papers 2016/137, International Monetary Fund.
    7. Erten, Bilge & Leight, Jessica & Tregenna, Fiona, 2019. "Trade liberalization and local labor market adjustment in South Africa," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 448-467.
    8. Rémi Bazillier & Jérôme Hericourt, 2017. "The Circular Relationship Between Inequality, Leverage, And Financial Crises," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 463-496, April.
    9. Dani Rodrik, 2008. "Understanding South Africa's economic puzzles," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 16(4), pages 769-797, October.
    10. Mary Hallward-Driemeier & Bob Rijkers & Andrew Waxman, 2017. "Do Employers' Responses to Crises Impact Men and Women Differently? Firm-level Evidence from Indonesia," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(4), pages 1018-1056, November.
    11. Bod’a, Martin & Považanová, Mariana, 2021. "Output-unemployment asymmetry in Okun coefficients for OECD countries," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 307-323.
    12. repec:ilo:ilowps:459401 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Bharadwaj, Prashant & Bietenbeck, Jan & Lundborg, Petter & Rooth, Dan-Olof, 2019. "Birth weight and vulnerability to a macroeconomic crisis," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C), pages 136-144.
    14. Lim, King Yoong, 2019. "Modelling the dynamics of corruption and unemployment with heterogeneous labour," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 98-117.
    15. Simon Franklin, 2015. "Location, search costs and youth unemployment: A randomized trial of transport subsidies in Ethiopia," CSAE Working Paper Series 2015-11, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    16. Johan Fourie, 2016. "The long walk to economic freedom after apartheid, and the road ahead," Working Papers 11/2016, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    17. Kucera, David, & Roncolato, Leanne. & Uexküll, Erik von., 2010. "Trade contraction in the global crisis : employment and inequality effects in India and South Africa," ILO Working Papers 994594013402676, International Labour Organization.
    18. Dorrit Posel & Daniela Casale & Claire Vermaak, 2014. "Job Search and the Measurement of Unemployment in South Africa," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 82(1), pages 66-80, March.
    19. Delfin Go & Marna Kearney & Vijdan Korman & Sherman Robinson & Karen Thierfelder, 2010. "Wage Subsidy and Labour Market Flexibility in South Africa," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(9), pages 1481-1502.
    20. Cali,Massimiliano & Francois,Joseph & Hollweg,Claire Honore & Manchin,Miriam & Oberdabernig,Doris Anita & Rojas Romagosa,Hugo Alexander & Rubinova,Stela & Tomberger,Patrick, 2016. "The labor content of exports database," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7615, The World Bank.
    21. repec:ldr:wpaper:92 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. d'Agostino, Giorgio & Scarlato, Margherita, 2016. "Gender Inequality in the South African Labour Market: the Impact of the Child Support Grant," MPRA Paper 72523, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2014-115. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Siméon Rapin (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/widerfi.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.