Standpunten en kanttekeningen

Tewerkstellingsgroei in de dienstensector en toenemende ongelijkheid: beschouwingen over twee trends in de Verenigde Staten

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Abstract

Employment growth in the service sectors and increasing inequality : reflections on two trends in the United States - This paper deals with the origins and consequences of two trends in the United States : employment growth in the service sector and increasing inequality. The rising importance of services in total employment dates back to at least as early as the turn of the century. Three sources of service employment growth are considered : a high income elasticity of services, an increasing complexity of the economic system and a low productivity increase in the service sector. It is argued that lagging productivity in the service sector either leads to price inflation of services above average inflation or low wage increase. With the exception of the retail sector and eating places, wages in most service sectors have been increasing at a rate as least as fast as in the rest of the economy. In the health services, prices have been rising much faster than average inflation. Since the late seventies the labour market is marked by an increasing inequality. The rising inequality is manifested under the form of increasing tails of the wage distribution. Newly created jobs are either high- or low-paying. The number of jobs with a median wage shows a negative growth. Inequality is also growing between high and low-skilled workers. High-skilled workers have seen their real wages go up, low-skilled have seen them go down. This is a general phenomenon in all sectors of the economy. Although the supply of high-skilled workers has not grown as fast as in the past, it is argued that the main cause for rising inequality is demand driven. Evidence points to a shift in the production technology of the US economy towards a greater use of highly educated workers. Even in sectors with negative total job growth, managerial jobs are still in high demand and are growing in numbers. It is concluded that the shift in labour demand towards more highly educated workers has not resulted in unemployment because of the wage flexibility of the American labour market. Low skilled workers however have paid a price by having to accept a lower real wage.

How to Cite:

Vermeulen, P., (1997) “Tewerkstellingsgroei in de dienstensector en toenemende ongelijkheid: beschouwingen over twee trends in de Verenigde Staten”, Tijdschrift voor Sociale Wetenschappen 42(2), 191–200. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/tvsw.95269