THE SHIFTING INCIDENCE OF INVOLUNTARY JOB LOSSES FROM 1968 TO 1992

Risks of involuntary job losses among male workers are examined with d ata spanning 1968 to 1992 from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. We find that the incidence of involuntary job losses among prime-age men with strong links to the labor market rose substantially over the peri od under investigation and about as much for college-educated and olde r workers as for less educated and less experienced workers. The only labor market group not sharing the burden of higher job-loss risks wer e government workers. Overall, involuntary job losses were distributed more evenly across skill groups during periods of macroeconomic expan sion than during periods of contraction.