Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment

In this article, we develop, unfold, and explore the concept of ‘chronic unemployment’ to capture a segment that is weakly attached to the labor market because of repeated spells of unemployment, interrupted only by shorter intervals of temporary employment, inactivity, and/or participation in acti...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Simo Aho, Magnus Jespersen, Regina Konle-Seidl, Rasmus Lind Ravn, Stine Rasmussen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Aalborg University 2025-08-01
Series:Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/158790
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849232777714597888
author Simo Aho
Magnus Jespersen
Regina Konle-Seidl
Rasmus Lind Ravn
Stine Rasmussen
author_facet Simo Aho
Magnus Jespersen
Regina Konle-Seidl
Rasmus Lind Ravn
Stine Rasmussen
author_sort Simo Aho
collection DOAJ
description In this article, we develop, unfold, and explore the concept of ‘chronic unemployment’ to capture a segment that is weakly attached to the labor market because of repeated spells of unemployment, interrupted only by shorter intervals of temporary employment, inactivity, and/or participation in active labor market policy measures (ALMP). We do this to capture this segment more adequately than conventional long-term unemployment statistics. We analyze unemployment trajectories of chronically unemployed individuals across different labor market and welfare regimes over more than 10 years based on longitudinal and comparable register data in Denmark, Germany, and Finland. We find that in these developed welfare states, unemployment of a more chronic character is a much wider problem than what conventional statistics reveal, and that sustainable integration into gainful employment at the open labor market is a distant goal for a considerable share of the group.
format Article
id doaj-art-9aa3ab28aec6421ab790fd1f8ede5c30
institution Kabale University
issn 2245-0157
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Aalborg University
record_format Article
series Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies
spelling doaj-art-9aa3ab28aec6421ab790fd1f8ede5c302025-08-21T00:03:17ZengAalborg UniversityNordic Journal of Working Life Studies2245-01572025-08-0110.18291/njwls.158790Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market AttachmentSimo Aho0Magnus Jespersen1Regina Konle-Seidl2Rasmus Lind Ravn3Stine Rasmussen4Tampere UniversityAalborg UniversityMigration and International Labour StudiesAalborg UniversityAalborg University In this article, we develop, unfold, and explore the concept of ‘chronic unemployment’ to capture a segment that is weakly attached to the labor market because of repeated spells of unemployment, interrupted only by shorter intervals of temporary employment, inactivity, and/or participation in active labor market policy measures (ALMP). We do this to capture this segment more adequately than conventional long-term unemployment statistics. We analyze unemployment trajectories of chronically unemployed individuals across different labor market and welfare regimes over more than 10 years based on longitudinal and comparable register data in Denmark, Germany, and Finland. We find that in these developed welfare states, unemployment of a more chronic character is a much wider problem than what conventional statistics reveal, and that sustainable integration into gainful employment at the open labor market is a distant goal for a considerable share of the group. https://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/158790Employment, Wages, Unemployment & RehabilitationLabor Market Institutions & Social Partners
spellingShingle Simo Aho
Magnus Jespersen
Regina Konle-Seidl
Rasmus Lind Ravn
Stine Rasmussen
Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies
Employment, Wages, Unemployment & Rehabilitation
Labor Market Institutions & Social Partners
title Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
title_full Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
title_fullStr Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
title_full_unstemmed Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
title_short Chronic Unemployment: A New Concept for Capturing Weak Labor Market Attachment
title_sort chronic unemployment a new concept for capturing weak labor market attachment
topic Employment, Wages, Unemployment & Rehabilitation
Labor Market Institutions & Social Partners
url https://tidsskrift.dk/njwls/article/view/158790
work_keys_str_mv AT simoaho chronicunemploymentanewconceptforcapturingweaklabormarketattachment
AT magnusjespersen chronicunemploymentanewconceptforcapturingweaklabormarketattachment
AT reginakonleseidl chronicunemploymentanewconceptforcapturingweaklabormarketattachment
AT rasmuslindravn chronicunemploymentanewconceptforcapturingweaklabormarketattachment
AT stinerasmussen chronicunemploymentanewconceptforcapturingweaklabormarketattachment