The Italian labour market has registered in the last decades a substantial growth in qualification of human capital, mainly as a consequence of both active job policies and sectorial structural changes. The composition of professional figures has changed across sectors, in favour of the more qualified ones. The driving forces can be identified in the allocation of employment from manufacturing to services and in the increase of demand of (new) services by firms and families. After a long lasting period of economic growth in the second half of nineties, the strong slowing down in output and aggregated demand registered in the three years after 2000 has drastically changed the labour market condition. In this years the variations in labour demand reflect a less positive economic trend and the decrease in consumption and activity. The effect is a reduction in the demand of more qualified professions, mainly for employment in social and health services, conditioned by the relative fall in the welfare expenditure. Associated with the employment rise in the period, an other relevant changes in composition is on work: new forms of flexible jobs appear and female employment increases. The object of this paper is to analyze the structure by professions of employment in Italy in the period 1995-2003. The focus is on the adjustment of the composition of professional employment after cyclical shocks and structural changes. The analysis intends to single out professions with higher growth rates in employment, conditioned to sectorial effects, and to investigate the effects on flexibility and qualification of total labour force. A particular attention will be dedicated to the presence of polarization in employment dynamics between high skill and low skill professions.
DE CASTRIS, M. (2004). Structural change and cyclical fluctuations of employment dynamics by professions in Italy.
Structural change and cyclical fluctuations of employment dynamics by professions in Italy
DE CASTRIS, MARUSCA
2004-01-01
Abstract
The Italian labour market has registered in the last decades a substantial growth in qualification of human capital, mainly as a consequence of both active job policies and sectorial structural changes. The composition of professional figures has changed across sectors, in favour of the more qualified ones. The driving forces can be identified in the allocation of employment from manufacturing to services and in the increase of demand of (new) services by firms and families. After a long lasting period of economic growth in the second half of nineties, the strong slowing down in output and aggregated demand registered in the three years after 2000 has drastically changed the labour market condition. In this years the variations in labour demand reflect a less positive economic trend and the decrease in consumption and activity. The effect is a reduction in the demand of more qualified professions, mainly for employment in social and health services, conditioned by the relative fall in the welfare expenditure. Associated with the employment rise in the period, an other relevant changes in composition is on work: new forms of flexible jobs appear and female employment increases. The object of this paper is to analyze the structure by professions of employment in Italy in the period 1995-2003. The focus is on the adjustment of the composition of professional employment after cyclical shocks and structural changes. The analysis intends to single out professions with higher growth rates in employment, conditioned to sectorial effects, and to investigate the effects on flexibility and qualification of total labour force. A particular attention will be dedicated to the presence of polarization in employment dynamics between high skill and low skill professions.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
