Precarious Transitions and Labour Market Disadvantage: Using Longitudinal Data to Explain the Nature of Work-Welfare Cycling

McCollum D. Precarious transitions and labour market disadvantage: using longitudinal data to explain the nature of work-welfare cycling, Regional Studies. Transitions from welfare into work are often regarded as a remedy to labour market exclusion. However, these transitions often do not lead to sustained employment, with many people persistently cycling between work and welfare. This paper uses longitudinal datasets to investigate the nature of this form of labour market disadvantage in the United Kingdom. Key findings are that most work-welfare cycling involves moves between unemployment and jobs at the bottom end of the occupational hierarchy, and that cycling is associated with buoyant labour market conditions and insecure forms of employment.