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The British Low-Wage Sector and the Employment Prospects of the Unemployed

Author

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  • Alexander Plum

    (Faculty of Economics and Management, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg)

Abstract

Are low wages an instrument for the unemployed to switch to high-paying jobs within a medium-term period? Using data from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), the labor market dynamics of men are analyzed up to six years after entering unemployment. An alternative econometric approach is presented that allows for correlated random effects between the three labor market states (high-paid employed, low-paid employed and unemployed). The results show that low wages help to significantly reduce the risk of future unemployment. Indications of a “springboard effect” of low wages are found, especially for men without post-secondary education. However, the calculated probability of obtaining a high-paying job is noticeably influenced by the monetary level of the low-wage threshold.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander Plum, 2014. "The British Low-Wage Sector and the Employment Prospects of the Unemployed," FEMM Working Papers 140004, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Faculty of Economics and Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:mag:wpaper:140004
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Plum, Alexander & Knies, Gundi, 2015. "Does neighbourhood unemployment affect the springboard effect of low pay?," ISER Working Paper Series 2015-20, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    2. Alexander Plum & Gail Pacheco & Kabir Dasgupta, 2021. "When There is No Way Up: Reconsidering Low‐paid Jobs as Stepping‐stones," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 97(318), pages 387-409, September.
    3. Alexander Plum & Gundi Knies, 2019. "Local unemployment changes the springboard effect of low pay: Evidence from England," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(11), pages 1-22, November.
    4. Plum, Alexander & Knies, Gundi, 2015. "Earnings prospects for low-paid workers higher than for the unemployed but only in high-pay areas with high unemployment," VfS Annual Conference 2015 (Muenster): Economic Development - Theory and Policy 112845, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    5. Pacheco, Gail & Plum, Alexander T. & Sloane, Peter J., 2020. "Not Much Bounce in the Springboard: On the Mobility of Low Pay Workers," IZA Discussion Papers 12896, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Alexander Plum, 2016. "Reconsidering the interrelated dynamics of unemployment and low-wage employment in Great Britain," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 36(2), pages 1230-1241.
    7. Manuela Rozalia Gabor & Petruța Blaga & Cosmin Matis, 2019. "Supporting Employability by a Skills Assessment Innovative Tool—Sustainable Transnational Insights from Employers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-18, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    low-pay dynamics; simulated correlated multivariate random effects probit model; state dependence; unobserved heterogeneity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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