Comparaisons des structures d'emploi : un panorama international (version anglaise)

Alain Bayet, Manuel Marciaux

Description

Les statistiques de l'emploi et du chômage, harmonisées au sein de l'Union européenne ou de l'OCDE, permettent d'établir des comparaisons internationales de plus en plus nourries, et d'ouvrir publiquement le débat sur l'origine des écarts entre pays, que ces écarts concernent le niveau global d'emploi ou sa répartition par secteur. Sur les vingt dernières années, si la tertiarisation de l'ensemble des économies développées se poursuit à un rythme soutenu, le niveau atteint diffère encore fortement selon les pays, et le poids respectif des services non marchands, des services marchands et du commerce varie sensiblement. Ainsi, la part de l'emploi dans le secteur tertiaire dépasse à peine 60 % en Allemagne, au Japon ou en Italie, alors qu'elle est proche de 70 % en France et de 75 % aux États-Unis. Celle de l'emploi dans le commerce et l'hôtellerie-restauration est d'environ 17 % en France et en Allemagne, contre 15 % en Suède et 24 % aux États-Unis. Les différences de taux d'emploi, correspondant à la part de la population active occupée au sein de la population totale en âge de travailler, sont à l'origine d'écarts d'emploi importants entre pays. La France occupe au sein de cette hiérarchie une position médiane : par rapport au niveau d'emploi qui serait atteint en appliquant le taux d'emploi des États-Unis, le déficit est de 19 % en France, alors qu'il est nul au Danemark et de l'ordre de 36 % en Espagne. Là encore, la déclinaison de cet écart par secteur d'activité fait ressortir les spécificités nationales des structures d'emploi.

Sujets

• INSEE
• Population active
• Qualification
• Emploi
• Europe
• Monde
• Employabilité, métiers et formations

Informations

• Publié par: insee
• Nombre de lectures: 64
• Langue: English

Extrait

Comparisons of Employment
Structures: An International
Panorama*
Alain Bayet Harmonised employment and unemployment statistics in the European Union and
and Manuel the OECD make increasingly detailed international comparisons possible and help
Marciaux ** to inform public debate about the origins of disparities between countries’ overall
employment levels and the origins of differences in the distribution of employment
between economic sectors.
Over the last twenty years, all advanced countries have seen rapid growth of the
service sector in their economies. Yet, the employment levels reached still vary widely
from one country to the next and there are substantial differences in the distribution of
jobs between non-market services, market services and wholesale and retail trade.
Service jobs account for just over 60% of employment in Germany, Japan and Italy,
whereas the figure is closer to 70% in France and 75% in the United States. Jobs in
wholesale and retail trade, hotels and catering accounted for 17% of employment in
France and Germany, as opposed to 15% market services and wholesale and retail
trade. Service jobs account for just over 60% of employment in Germany, Japan and
Italy, whereas the figure is closer to 70% in France and 75% in the United States. Jobs
in wholesale and retail trade, hotels and catering accounted for 17% of employment in
*Originally published as
France and Germany, as opposed to 15% in Sweden and 24% in the United“Comparaisons des
structures d’emploi : un States.Differences in the employment rate, which is the proportion of the working-age
panorama internatio-
population that is in the labour force and in work, explain the major differences innal,“ Économie et
Statistique, no. 318, employment from country to country. France is in a middling position in this respect.
1998-8.
** Alain Bayet and Manuel Compared to the American employment rate, the shortfall in France is 19%, whereas
Marciaux work in the it is zero in Denmark and about 36% in Spain. Once again, detailed examination of the
Services and Trade
Office of the Forecas- disparities in individual activity sectors reveals the specific national features of
ting Directorate.
employment structures.The names and dates in
parentheses refer to the
bibliography at the end
of the article.
mployment and unemployment are key administrative sources. The reliability of these
issues in economic analysis in the data and statistics is recognised, especiallyE
advanced countries, particularly in Europe. A since efforts have been made to improve their
wealth of data and statistics is collected and suitability for international comparisons.
compiled from a wide variety of sources, Theliteraturedealingwithemploymentisusually
including structural surveys of households and based on critical comparisons of national data
firms, business conditions surveys and sources (Elfring, 1989) or more direct references
INSEE Studies, no. 41, November 1999 1to OECD publications (Ires, 1993). The OECD very specific countries and sectors. This article
statistics are compiled from data provided by the extends the comparison to encompass major
various national statistics institutes. These data activity sectors across several European
are mainly taken from the System of National countries, thus providing readers with reference
Accounts. This study uses Eurostat statistics data to help put the issues dealt with in more detail
when dealing with European Union Countries, by the two following articles into context.
because the Labour Force Surveys used to collect However, readers must not lose sight of the wide
the employment statistics were designed from the variety of situations encountered in Europe, both
outset to meet harmonisation requirements. The in terms of overall employment levels and the
data from these surveys are usually very similar to distribution of employment by activity sector.
those of the OECD, but some differences do show They should also avoid the overly simplistic
up in the case of certain countries, such as comparisons that are sometimes made between
Belgium or the United Kingdom. However, these the United States and Europe as a whole.
differences are more noticeable in the level data
than in the trend data.
The level and content of serviceThe publication of harmonised statistics enables
employment vary from one countryus to make direct comparisons of employment
rates, which means the proportions of national to the next
working age populations that are in the labour
force and in work. Such a comparison shows that The service sector of industrialised countries’
France has 20% fewer jobs per inhabitant than the economies has grown rapidly over the last few
United States. In other words, if France had the decades, leading to a much larger proportion of
same employment rate as the United States, it service jobs. The share of service jobs increased
would have 25% more jobs, which works out to substantially in all these countries between 1979
about 5 million jobs in absolute terms. In the two and 1996 (see Table 1). The increase was
following articles, Piketty, together with Gadrey approximately 10 percentage points in most
and Jany-Catrice put forward original countries, with the exception of the United
explanations for these disparities by looking at Kingdom, the Netherlands, Ireland and France,
where it was closer to 15 percentage points.
Yet, the level of employment in the service sector is
notthesameinallcountries.IntheUnitedStates,the
Table 1 share of employment in the service sector stood at
The share of service employment more than 73% in 1996. At the same time, two
is increasing in all advanced countries groups of European countries could be
In % distinguished. In the first group, made up of the
United Kingdom, France, Belgium, theShare of service sector employment
in total employment Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden, the share of
servicejobsstoodatabout70%.Inthesecondgroup,
1979 1988 1996 made up of Germany, Spain, Italy and Ireland,
together with Japan, the proportion was just over
France 54.6 62.8 68.6
60%. The differences in levels of employment, as
Germany 49.9 55.0 61.8 wellasinratesofgrowth,stemfromthewidevariety
Denmark 59.8 67.1 69.7 of employment structures. The decline of
Italy 49.1 58.0 61.1 manufacturing and agriculture, which accompanies
the growth of services in an economy, did not occurUnited Kingdom 55.4 64.9 70.6
the same way in all countries. Employment
Belgium 58.6 65.5 69.6
structures in Germany and Japan show that these
Spain n.d. 53.2 62.0
countries are still major manufacturing powers,
Netherlands 60.0 68.6 73.1
unlike Ireland and Spain, where agriculture
Irland 46.7 55.6 61.4 accounts for a greater share of jobs. In 1996,
Sweden (1) n.d. n.d. 70.9 manufacturing jobs in Germany and Japan
accounted respectively for 35% and 33% ofJapan 53.9 58.0 61.2
employment, whereas the average for the advancedUnited States 65.1 70.2 73.3
countries that we are considering stood at 28%. In
1. n.d.: not determined the same year, the proportions of agricultural jobs in
IrelandandSpainstoodat11%and9%respectively,
Source : Eurostat for the European countries; OECD (1997b) for
much higher than the average share of 5%.
Japan and the United States.
2 INSEE Studies no. 041 November 1999The differences between countries also relate to whichvirtuallymatchedthea74.6%employment
the content of their service sectors. To begin with, rate in Japan. On the other hand, Spain’s
the distinction between market and non-market employment rate stood at only 47%. Thus we
services that can be made on the basis of the observe a wide dispersion of employment gaps.
OECD data shows that the employment These gaps are the percentage difference between
contribution of each type of service varies actual employment rates and the theoretical
substantially from one country to the next. The employment rates that would be reached if the
contribution of non-market services to the growth rates were the same as in the United
of service jobs is much more significant in the States. The gaps range from +1% in Denmark to
countries with a «social democrat» tradition -36% in Spain. France’s employment gap, with
compared to the United States, the United regard to the United States is approximately 5
Kingdom and Japan, where they make a much million jobs, or 19% of the theoretical number of
smaller contribution (Ires, 1993). Furthermore, jobs. The European countries with smaller
within the market services sector, wholesale and employment gaps than France are Germany, the
retailtrade,togetherwithhotelsandcatering,only Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden and
contributed to European service employment Denmark.
growth in the United Kingdom, Italy and Ireland.
In France and Germany, the share of jobs in these
Employment rates by age groupsectors remained stable at about 17% of total
employment, whereas it rose from 17% to 20% in
the United Kingdom, from 19% to 22% in Italy This aggregate comparison may seem quite
and from 16% to 19% in Ireland. approximate. Nevertheless, it provides reference
data that are highly likely to stimulate more
in-depth research work. For example, the
Wide dispersion of employment rates comparison could be refined further by analysing
in Europe
We measure European and Japanese employment
gaps