Labor Market Divisions

Abstract

The most abstract concept of labor markets is helpful to depict the general features of the transactions between those who hire or want to hire labor power and those who offer it in exchange for money. As has been observed many times, however, in the real world there is not just one single labor market but several submarkets, more or less separated from one another (see, e.g., Althauser and Kalleberg 1981; Kalleberg and Sørensen 1979). Submarkets can be distinguished along several dimensions and we find quite a few such attempts in the literature. Jobs are usually the point of departure, as it is their characteristics that make up the major dividing lines. This chapter concentrates on a number of significant labor market divisions and the assumption is that they provide fundamental structures for actors to adapt to or try to transgress or transform. By identifying sub-markets, we also establish a basis for analyzing individuals’ mobility.