The measurement and significance of multiple jobholding in the United States

Abstract

Multiple jobholding grew rapidly during the decade of the 1980's in the United States. This trend had profound effects on the total volume of labor provided by the workforce, and on such matters as the relationship between that volume as measured in the survey of households and that measured in the survey of businesses. As the international community draws closer to defining a Labor Accounting System to supplement the System of National Accounts, the importance of understanding the difference between the two major concepts of employment grows, as does the requirement to appropriately classify multiple jobholding and comprehend the meaning of this status for economic and social policy.