IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/indres/v53y2014i4p636-662.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Who wants the Contrat de Travail Unique? Social Support for Labor Market Flexibilization in France

Author

Listed:
  • Bruno Amable

Abstract

type="main" xml:id="irel12070-abs-0001"> In France, a proposal was made to substitute a unique labor contract with a degree of employment protection increasing with tenure to the existing open-end and fixed-term contracts. Using survey data, this paper analyzes the social support for this contrat de travail unique (CTU). Contrary to the prediction of insider/outsider theories, support for the CTU comes from insider groups, whereas most outsider groups oppose it. This result may be the consequence of the job protection increasing with tenure. This mechanism could reinforce certain types of market segmentation instead of abolishing employment precariousness.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruno Amable, 2014. "Who wants the Contrat de Travail Unique? Social Support for Labor Market Flexibilization in France," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 636-662, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:indres:v:53:y:2014:i:4:p:636-662
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/irel.2014.53.issue-4
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bruno Amable & Lilas Demmou & Donatella Gatti, 2011. "The effect of employment protection and product market regulation on labour market performance: substitution or complementarity?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(4), pages 449-464.
    2. Gilles Saint-Paul, 2002. "The Political Economy of Employment Protection," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 110(3), pages 672-701, June.
    3. Rueda, David, 2005. "Insider–Outsider Politics in Industrialized Democracies: The Challenge to Social Democratic Parties," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 99(1), pages 61-74, February.
    4. Bruno Amable & Ken Mayhew, 2011. "Unemployment in the OECD," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 27(2), pages 207-220.
    5. Gilles Saint-Paul, 2004. "Why are European Countries Diverging in their Unemployment Experience?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 18(4), pages 49-68, Fall.
    6. Rueda, David, 2006. "Social Democracy and Active Labour-Market Policies: Insiders, Outsiders and the Politics of Employment Promotion," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 36(3), pages 385-406, July.
    7. Saint-Paul, Gilles, 2000. "The Political Economy of Labour Market Institutions," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198293323.
    8. Bean, Charles R, 1994. "European Unemployment: A Survey," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 32(2), pages 573-619, June.
    9. Eckhard Hein & Engelbert Stockhammer (ed.), 2011. "A Modern Guide to Keynesian Macroeconomics and Economic Policies," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 13962.
    10. Dean Baker & Andrew Glyn & David Howell & John Schmitt, 2002. "Labor Market Institutions and Unemployment: A Critical Assessment of the Cross-Country Evidence," SCEPA working paper series. 2002-17, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA), The New School.
    11. David N. F. Bell & David G. Blanchflower, 2011. "Young people and the Great Recession," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 27(2), pages 241-267.
    12. Howell David R. & Baker Dean & Glyn Andrew & Schmitt John, 2007. "Are Protective Labor Market Institutions at the Root of Unemployment? A Critical Review of the Evidence," Capitalism and Society, De Gruyter, vol. 2(1), pages 1-73, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Guillaud, Elvire & Marx, Paul, 2013. "Preferences for Employment Protection and the Insider-Outsider Divide," IZA Discussion Papers 7569, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Normann Rion, 2019. "Waiting for the Prince Charming: Fixed-Term Contracts as Stopgaps," Working Papers halshs-02331887, HAL.
    3. Bruno Amable, 2014. "The unsolved contradictions of the modernists. Economic policy expectations and political crisis in France 1978-2012," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 14023, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    4. Brigitte Granville & Jaume Martorell Cruz, 2016. "Squared Segmentation: How the Insider/Outsider divide across Public/Private Employment shapes attitudes towards markets," Working Papers 78, Queen Mary, University of London, School of Business and Management, Centre for Globalisation Research.
    5. Thomas Prosser & Giga Giorgadze, 2018. "Towards a theory of illiberal dualisation? Conceptualising new employment and social policy divisions in Poland and the United Kingdom," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 24(2), pages 151-162, May.
    6. Nils BRAAKMANN & Bernd BRANDL, 2021. "The performance effects of collective and individual bargaining: A comprehensive and granular analysis of the effects of different bargaining systems on company productivity," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 160(1), pages 43-64, March.

    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. Valeria Cirillo & Marta Fana & Dario Guarascio, 2017. "Labour market reforms in Italy: evaluating the effects of the Jobs Act," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 34(2), pages 211-232, August.
    2. Brigitte Granville & Jaume Martorell Cruz, 2016. "Squared Segmentation: How the Insider/Outsider divide across Public/Private Employment shapes attitudes towards markets," Working Papers 78, Queen Mary, University of London, School of Business and Management, Centre for Globalisation Research.
    3. Ronconi, Lucas & Kanbur, Ravi & López-Cariboni, Santiago, 2019. "Who Demands Labour (De)Regulation in the Developing World? Insider–Outsider Theory Revisited," IZA Discussion Papers 12831, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Patrick Minford & Ruthira Naraidoo, 2010. "Vicious And Virtuous Circles – The Political Economy Of Unemployment," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 78(1), pages 1-22, March.
    5. Gilles Saint-Paul, 2004. "Why are European Countries Diverging in their Unemployment Experience?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 18(4), pages 49-68, Fall.
    6. David R. Howell, 2010. "Institutions, Aggregate Demand and Cross-Country Employment Performance: Alternative Theoretical Perspectives and the Evidence," Working Papers wp228, Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
    7. Ochsen, Carsten & Welsch, Heinz, 2012. "Who benefits from labor market institutions? Evidence from surveys of life satisfaction," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 112-124.
    8. Leandro Elia, 2010. "Temporary/Permanent Workers' Wage Gap: A Brand‐new Form of Wage Inequality?," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 24(2), pages 178-200, June.
    9. Kanbur, Ravi & Ronconi, Lucas & López-Cariboni, Santiago, 2020. "Who demands labour (de)regulation in the developing world? Insider–outsider theory revisited," CEPR Discussion Papers 14277, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    10. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/50jd34uldo9jioklc7b0dpu4ej is not listed on IDEAS
    11. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/6761 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Blanchflower, David G. & Bryson, Alex, 2021. "The Economics of Walking About and Predicting Unemployment," GLO Discussion Paper Series 922, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    13. Andrew Clark & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2009. "Job security and job protection," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 61(2), pages 207-239, April.
    14. Giovanni Dosi & Marcelo C. Pereira & Andrea Roventini & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2016. "The Effects of Labour Market Reforms upon Unemployment and Income Inequalities: an Agent Based Model," LEM Papers Series 2016/27, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    15. L'Haridon, Olivier & Malherbet, Franck, 2009. "Employment protection reform in search economies," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(3), pages 255-273, April.
    16. Beissinger, Thomas, 2003. "Strukturelle Arbeitslosigkeit in Europa : eine Bestandsaufnahme (Structural unemployment in Europe * an inventory)," Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 36(4), pages 411-427.
    17. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/3kbkotqp1b85pa2lu2puri38p6 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/6761 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Gersbach, Hans & Schniewind, Achim, 2001. "Awareness of General Equilibrium Effects and Unemployment," IZA Discussion Papers 394, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    20. Céline Piton, 2022. "The labour market performance of vulnerable groups: towards a better understanding of the main driving forces," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/352519, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    21. Guillaud, Elvire & Marx, Paul, 2013. "Preferences for Employment Protection and the Insider-Outsider Divide," IZA Discussion Papers 7569, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    22. Giovanni Dosi & Marcelo C. Pereira & Andrea Roventini & Maria Enrica Virgillito, 2016. "The Effects of Labour Market Reforms upon Unemployment and Income Inequalities: an Agent Based Model," LEM Papers Series 2016/27, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    23. Eichhorst, Werner & Marx, Paul & Wehner, Caroline, 2017. "Labor market reforms in Europe: towards more flexicure labor markets?," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 51(1), pages 1-3.
    24. Maciej Bukowski & Grzegorz Koloch & Piotr Lewandowski & Anna Baranowska & Iga Magda & Arkadiusz Szydlowski & Jacek Bielinski & Magdalena Bober & Malgorzata Sarzalska & Julian Zawistowski, 2008. "Employment in Poland 2007. Security on a Flexible Labour Market," Books and Reports published by IBS, Instytut Badan Strukturalnych, number zwp2007 edited by Maciej Bukowski, january.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J41 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Labor Contracts
    • P16 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:bla:indres:v:53:y:2014:i:4:p:636-662. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0019-8676 .

    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.