Using work-history data from the British Household Panel Survey, the author
s examine job mobility and job tenure over the period 1915-90. British men
and women held an average of five jobs over the course of their work lives,
and half of all lifetime job changes occurred in the first ten years. Sepa
ration hazards were higher for more recent cohorts, implying an increase in
job instability. As jobs accumulated, average tenure lengthened, but the p
roportion of involuntary separations increased. For both men and women, the
rise in job instability was particularly marked in the lowest occupational
classification. In general, job insecurity was greater for men than women.