Material deprivation and employment status in post-transition: Evidence from North Macedonia

Nikoloski, Dimitar (2021) Material deprivation and employment status in post-transition: Evidence from North Macedonia. SEER Journal for Labour and Social Affairs in Eastern Europe, 24 (1). pp. 135-152. ISSN 1435-2869

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Abstract

Poverty and social exclusion are often associated with unemployment, but being employed is not always sufficient to provide decent living conditions for workers and their families. Decent work means opportunities for everyone to get work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for families, better prospects for personal development and social integration. In this context, the aim of this paper is to assess the underlying causes of severe material deprivation in North Macedonia from the point of view of employment status, particularly the differences between employed and unemployed workers. The analysis draws from an examination of micro data from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC). The results show that employed workers although being better off than unemployed, still face much higher risk of severe material deprivation if they are positioned in the so-called secondary labour market. Namely, employed who are in bad health conditions, have elementary occupation, low level of education and low pay are disproportionally affected by material deprivation. In contrast, the unemployed workers with low human capital accumulation and living in households with low work intensity are at highest risk of severe material deprivation. In the case of North Macedonia the alternative labour market adjustment mechanisms considerably contribute in cushioning the consequences of severe material deprivation. Namely, people living in rural areas face lower probability of severe material deprivation indicating that subsistence agriculture might play significant role in improving the households wellbeing. In addition, living in bigger households improves the position of unemployed workers meaning that the income pooling and intra-household transfers are important sources of poverty alleviation. The proposed policy recommendations aiming at reducing the severe material deprivation cover the following areas: education and training, active labour market policies, unionisation and collective bargaining, wage subsidies and taxation and, statutory minimum wage.

Item Type:	Article
Subjects:	Scientific Fields (Frascati) > Social Sciences > Economics and Business
Divisions:	Faculty of Economics
Depositing User:	Efp Eprints
Date Deposited:	20 Sep 2022 07:57
Last Modified:	20 Sep 2022 07:57
URI:	https://eprints.uklo.edu.mk/id/eprint/7124

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