This study investigates the impact of economic restructuring on the labour force participation of subordinate minority men. Taking Israel as a case study, we review the trends of labour force participation of Arab men over the last two decades and compare their levels of participation with those of Jewish men. We also examine the main variables, which cause their withdrawal from the labour market. The data for the study was drawn from the labour force surveys that the Central Bureau of Statistics carries out on regular basis. The unique panel structure of these surveys enabled us to analyse the dynamics and shifts in the process of withdrawal. Results of the analysis indicate that age, education, class and unemployment at any given point in time are the variables that increase the likelihood of Arab men's dropout from the labour market. These variables effect the withdrawal of Jewish men from the labour market differently. The differences in the determinants of labour force withdrawal by Arab and Jewish men reflect the segmented nature of the Israeli labour market. These results are employed to evaluate the impact of restructuring on labour market's segmentation.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Becker, G. (1957) The Economics of Discrimination, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
2.
Bonacich, E. (1972) `A theory of ethnic antagonism: the split labour market', American Sociological Review, 37, 547-559.
3.
Bonacich, E. (1976) `Advanced capitalism and black/white race relations in the United States: a split labour market interpretation', American Sociological Review, 41, 34-51.
4.
Brown, J. (1980) The social Psychology of Industry, Middlesex: Penguin Books.
5.
CBS (Central Bureau of Statistics, the State of Israel) . 1993, 1995. Statistical Abstract of Israel. Jerusalem
6.
Cornfield, D.B. (1987) `Ethnic inequality in layoff chances: the impact of unionisation and layoff procedure' in Redundancy, Layoffs and Plant Closer, P.M. Lee (ed.), London: Cromhelm, 116-140.
7.
Daenzer, P. (1991) `Unemployment and minority immigrants in Canada', International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 11, 1-3, 29-50.
8.
Doeringer, P. and M. Piore. (1971) Internal Labor Markets and Manpower Analysis, Lexington, Mass.: D.C. Heath.
9.
Edwards, R. (1979) Contested Terrain, New York: Basic Books.
10.
Erikson, R. and J. H. Goldthorpe. (1992) The Constant Flux: A Study of Class Mobility in Industrial Societies, Oxford: Clarendon Press.
11.
Fainstein, N. (1987) `The underclass/mismatch hypothesis as an explanation for Black economic deprivation', Politics and Society, 15, 403-415.
12.
Farley, J. E. (1987) `Disproportionate Black and Hispanic unemployment in the US metropolitan areas: the roles of racial inequality, segregation and discrimination in male joblessness', The American Journal of Economics and Sociology. 46, 129-150.
13.
Fieldhouse, E.Hollywood, E. (1999) `Life after mining: hidden unemployment and Changing patterns of economic activity amongst miners in England and Wales, 1981-1991', Work, Employment and Society, 13, 3, 483-502.
14.
Gerber, L. (1995) `Corporatism and state theory', Social Science History, 19, 3, 313-332.
15.
Goldthorpe, J. H. , Yaish, M. and Kraus, V. (1997) `Class mobility in Israeli society: a comparative perspective', Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 15, 3-28.
16.
Hodson, M. and Kaufman, R. (1983) `Economic dualism: a critical review', American Sociological Review, 47, 727-739.
17.
Jessop, B. (1995) `The regulation approach, governance and post-Fordism: alternative perspectives on economic and political change', Economy and Society, 24, 3, 307-333.
18.
Juhn, C. (1992) `Decline of male labour market participation: the role of declining market opportunities', The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 79-121.
19.
Kasarda, J. (1983) `Entry level jobs, mobility, and urban minority unemployment', Urban Affairs Quarterly, 19, 21-40.
20.
Kasarda. J. (1989) `Urban industrial transition and the underclass', AAPSS, 501, 26-47.
21.
Kolberg, J. and Kolstad, A. (1992) `Unemployment regimes', International Journal of Sociology, 4, 171-192.
22.
Kretzmer, D. (1987) The legal status of Arabs in Israel, Tel-Aviv: International Center for Peace in the Middle East.
23.
Lewin-Epstein, N. and Semyonov, M. (1986) `Group mobility in the Israeli labor market', American Sociological Review, 51, 342-352.
24.
Lewin-Epstein, N. and Semyonov, M. (1993) The Arab Minority in Israel's Economy: Patterns of Ethnic Inequality, Boulder, Colorado: Westview, Social Inequality Series.
25.
Lewin-Epstein, N. and Sa'di, A. (1998) The Impact of Labor Market Structure, Age and Ethnicity on Withdrawal of Prime-Age Arab Men From the Labor Market. Tel-Aviv University: The Pinhas Sapir Center For Development, Discussion paper 5-98.
26.
Lewin-Epstein, N.Semyonov, M. with Wright, J. (1999) `The Israeli dilemma over economic discrimination and labour-market competition' in The Political Economy of Middle East Peace, J. Wright (ed.), London: Routledge, 109-127.
27.
Lipietz, A. (1987) Mirages and Miracles, London: Verso.
28.
Mazawi, A. (1994) `Palestinians in Israel: educational expansion, social mobility and political control', Compare: A Journal of Comparative Education, 24, 3, 277-284.
29.
Mazawi, A. (1998) `Region, locality characteristics, high school tacking and access to educational credentials: the case of Palestinian Arab communities in Israel', Educational Studies, 24, 2, 223-240.
30.
Miller, R. (1998) `Unemployment as a mobility status', Work, Employment and Society, 12, 4, 695-711.
31.
Murphy, E. (1994) `Structural inhibitions to economic liberalisation in Israel', Middle East Journal, 48, 1, 65-88.
32.
Nitzan, J. and Bichler, S. (1999) `The impermanent war economy? Peace dividends and capital accumulation in Israeli competition' in The Political Economy of Middle East Peace, J. Wright (ed.), London: Routledge, 73-108.
33.
Parsons, D. O. (1980) `The decline in male labour force participation', Journal of Political Economy, 88, 117-134.
34.
Piore, M. (1973) `Notes for a theory of labour market stratification', in Labour Market Segmentation, R. Edwardset. al., (eds.), Lexington: D. C. Heath and Company.
35.
Rife, J. and First, R. (1989) `Discouraged older workers: an exploratory study', International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 29, 3, 195-203.
36.
Rosenberg, S. (1977) `The Marxian reserve army of labour and the dual labour market', Politics and Society, 7, 221-228.
37.
Rosenberg, S. (1980) `Male occupational standing and the dual labour market', Industrial Relation, 19, 34-49.
38.
Sa'di, A. (1992) `The Palestinians in Israel: a study of a subordinate national minority', University of Manchester: Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis.
39.
Sa'di, A. (1995) `Incorporation without integration: Palestinian-citizens in Israel's labour market', Sociology, 29, 3, 429-451.
40.
Schervish, P. (1981) `The structure of employment and unemployment' in Sociological Perspectives on Labor Markets, Ivar Berg (ed.), New York: Academic Press, 153-186
41.
Semyonov, M. and Lewin-Epstein, N. (1989) `Segregation and competition in occupational labour markets', Social Forces, 68, 379-396.
42.
Shavit, Y. (1990) `Segregation, tracking and the educational attainment of minorities: Arabs and Oriental Jews in Israel', American Sociological Review, 55, 115-126.
43.
Sjoberg, O. (2000) `Unemployment and unemployment benefits in the OECD 1960-1990 - an empirical test of neo-classical economic theory', Work, Employment and Society, 14, 1, 51-76.
44.
Stewart, M. (1967) Keynes and After, Middlesex: Penguin books.
45.
Swirski, S. (1990) Education in Israel: Schooling for Inequality, Tel-Aviv: Brerot (in Hebrew).
46.
Tyree, A. (1981) `Occupational socioeconomic status, ethnicity and sex in Israel: consideration in scale construction', Megamot, 27, 7-21. (in Hebrew)
47.
Waldinger, R. and Bailey, T. (1991) `The continuing significance of race: racial conflict and racial discrimination in construction', Politics and Society, 19, 291-323.
48.
Walters, W. (1996) `The demise of unemployment', Politics and Society, 24, 3, 197-219.
49.
Wilson, J. W. (1978) The Declining Significance of Race, Chicago: Chicago University Press.
50.
Wolkinson, B. (1989) Equal Employment Opportunity for Israel's Arab Citizens, Tel-Aviv University, G. Meir Institute for Social and Labor Research, Discussion Paper no. 48.
