The determinants of jobless durations of displaced workers in Canada

Abstract

A hazard model of jobless durations is estimated using data from the 1986 Canadian Displaced Workers Survey. Hypothesis concerning demographic difference in reeployment transitions are testes and the effect of certain labour market and policy variables is assested. The findings are compared with those published in studies using the United States Displayed Workers Survey,and attempt to exploit certain information which is unavailable in the US data set. The demographic variables play an important ans expected role in determining the distribution of jobless spels. Characterstic pertaining to the former job,such as union status and wage level,also have explanatory power. Contrary to the findings of US studies,the length of tenure of the former job is insignificant,and the less difference in duration is found for workers who lost their jobs due to a plant closure as opposed to those displaced via a partial layoff.