Russel Sage Foundation

Horst Brand, a retired economist formerly with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, published a review of Arne Kalleberg's book Good Jobs, Bad Jobs: The Rise of Polarization and Precarious Employment Systems in the United States. Kalleberg's book, which traces the decades-long polarization between American workers with higher skill levels and those with low skills and low wages, is doubly relevant in light of last week's disappointing jobs report. As concerns grow about the weak labor market, it is important to keep in mind the long-term structural changes that have increased the number of precarious jobs in America. As Brand notes:

Kalleberg contends that, during the 30 years following the end of World War II, a "psychological" or "social" contract existed between capital and labor, ensuring the mass of blue-collar workers a measure of job tenure and occasional promotions in return for hard work and reliability. This understanding began to erode during the 1970s. Jobs became less secure; industries faced such "macro-economic forces as aging technologies, and rising global competition from the lower cost labor of developing countries." Labor market institutions weakened, becoming less able to protect workers against downsizing, two-tier wage agreements, outsourcing, the hiring of temporary employees, and other means of facilitating "flexibility." Risk tended increasingly to be transferred to the workforce; for example, employer-paid pensions began shifting from defined benefit plans to defined contribution arrangements, and funds for employee training began drying up. [...]

In his tireless pursuit of workers’ quality of worklife experience, Kalleberg also investigates the time pressures they must address—on the job as well as at home. According to International Labor Organization data that he cites, "Americans worked 1,978 hours in 2000, a full 350 hours—9 weeks—more than Western Europeans," and dual-earner couples worked a total of 3,932 hours in 2000. In addition, "The average American worked 199 hours more in 2000 than in 1973," a period of three decades during which productivity nearly doubled. Possible reasons workers put in more hours include (1) efforts to make up for stagnant earnings, (2) corporate restructuring (i.e., downsizing, or reducing staff size), and (3) the pressures of global competition. Per Kalleberg, "The perceptions of a time squeeze on families [have led] … scholars and lay persons to question the legitimacy of time demands at work, the sacrifice of other values to the ever faster production of goods and services, and the resulting burden placed on the family and the health of citizens."

Read Brand's full review, published in the Monthly Labor Review. You can also read the introduction to Kalleberg's book for free.