NC State Economist Dr. Mike Walden – “Have Full-Time Jobs Returned?”
Mary: I’m Mary Walden with economist MW, welcoming you to the economic perspective. Today’s program asks if full-time jobs have returned. Mike, among the many economic issues associated with the Great Recession was the rise of part-time work and the decline of full-time jobs. Now that the economy has been growing for seven years, has that trend reversed?
Mike: Summary Answer
- It has: the number of people who say they are working part-time but would really prefer full-time work has steadily declined
- However, still not back to pre-recessionary levels
- But another shift may be going on – despite fact that it is often more costly per worker to hire full-time rather than part-time, so businesses are doing so
- Reason – they say full-time workers are often more reliable
- Also say they stay longer, so costs of recruiting new workers are lower
- If more businesses come to this conclusion, we may buck the trend that many predicted – that we would become an economy of part-time workers
- I’m MW
Mary: And I’m Mary Walden for the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service
