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Temporary work agencies and equilibrium unemployment

Author

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  • Neugart, Michael

    (Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University)

  • Storrie, Donald

    (Centre for European Labour Market Studies, Department of Economics)

Abstract

A striking feature of OECD labor markets in the 1990s has been the very rapid increase of temporary agency work. We augment the equilibrium unemployment model as developed by Pissarides and Mortensen with temporary work agencies in order to focus on their role as matching intermediaries and to examine the aggregate impact on employment. Our model implies that the improvement in the matching e±ciency of agencies led to the emergence and growth of temporary agency work. We also show that temporary agency work does not necessarily crowd-out other jobs.

Suggested Citation

  • Neugart, Michael & Storrie, Donald, 2002. "Temporary work agencies and equilibrium unemployment," Working Papers in Economics 83, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:gunwpe:0083
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. J. Ignacio García‐Pérez & Fernando Muñoz‐Bullón, 2005. "Temporary Help Agencies and Occupational Mobility," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 67(2), pages 163-180, April.
    2. Kyyrä, Tomi & Parrotta, Pierpaolo & Rosholm, Michael, 2013. "The effect of receiving supplementary UI benefits on unemployment duration," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(C), pages 122-133.
    3. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/1v5orglviq8epaecq1buersvk5 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Nathalie Havet & Xavier Joutard & Alexis Penot, 2019. "Les pratiques d’activité réduite et leurs impacts sur les trajectoires professionnelles : une revue de la littérature," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 129(1), pages 11-47.
    5. Tito Boeri & Pierre Cahuc, 2022. "Labor Market Insurance Policies in the XXI Century," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-03878719, HAL.
    6. David H. Autor & Susan N. Houseman, 2010. "Do Temporary-Help Jobs Improve Labor Market Outcomes for Low-Skilled Workers? Evidence from "Work First"," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(3), pages 96-128, July.
    7. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/1v5orglviq8epaecq1buersvk5 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Lars W. Mitlacher, 2005. "Temporary Agency Work, the Changing Employment Relationship and its Impact on Human Resource Management," management revue - Socio-Economic Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 16(3), pages 370-388.
    9. Kvasnicka, Michael, 2003. "Inside The Black Box of Temporary Help Agencies," SFB 373 Discussion Papers 2003,43, Humboldt University of Berlin, Interdisciplinary Research Project 373: Quantification and Simulation of Economic Processes.
    10. Etienne Campens & Solenne Tanguy, 2005. "The market for job placement : a model of head-hunters," Cahiers de la Maison des Sciences Economiques v06027, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1).
    11. Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes & Miguel Malo & Fernando Muñoz-Bullón, 2008. "The Role of Temporary Help Agency Employment on Temp-to-Perm Transitions," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 29(2), pages 138-161, June.
    12. Lars W. Mitlacher, 2007. "The Role of Temporary Agency Work in Different Industrial Relations Systems — a Comparison between Germany and the USA," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 45(3), pages 581-606, September.
    13. Smirnykh, Larisa, 2005. "Labor leasing: economic theory, EU and Russia experience," MPRA Paper 21568, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Etienne Campens & Solenne Tanguy, 2006. "The market for job placement: a model of headhunters," Post-Print halshs-00113476, HAL.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    temporary work agencies; matching model; equilibrium unemployment; crowding-out;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J41 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Labor Contracts
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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