1. N° 06
06/2020
Job insecurity worsened for 25% of the residents
as a consequence of the COVID-19 crisis.
Results of the COVID-19 Social and Economic Impact Survey
FIGURE 1 : FOR MOST RESIDENTS JOB SECURITY DID NOT CHANGE
For 75% of residents, job security either improved or did not change
since the start of the lockdown. The dark side of what sounds
like good news is that the uncertainty about the future of jobs
worsened for 25% of respondents (see figure 1). As a reference,
in 2015 the European Working Conditions Survey – a high quality
survey administered by Eurofund – placed Luxembourg among the
European countries in the lowest tier for job security (see figure
2). The new figures by Eurofund should be released in 2020, but
probably the pandemic did not change the international ranking, as
COVID-19 affected all countries in similar ways and imposed similar
measures⁴ on all of them. At present it is impossible to evaluate
There are few things that can be as destructive for people’s well-
being as unemployment and the fear of losing one’s job, i.e. job
insecurity¹. Social stigma, difficulty to make ends meet, feelings
of failure, uncertainty about one’s own future, re-employment
opportunities, and the difficulty to provide for loved ones are some
of the reasons why worldwide unemployed people are usually
less satisfied with their lives than people in employment . This
emphasizes the importance of social policies to shelter people
against unemployment and to foster job security. Indeed, the well-
being consequences of job insecurity constitute a psychological
cost for those in fear, but they also negatively affect the prospects
of those who are still in employment². Additionally, job insecurity
can have adverse effects on an employee’s health, absenteeism,
and work engagement which, in turn can lead to decreased
organizational performance. Gallup, a renowned analytics and
advice firm, found that the odds of engagement on the workplace
decrease by 37% among employees who are insecure about the
stability of their job³.
How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect the job security of residents
in Luxembourg? The lockdown period forced many companies
to temporarily shut down, forcing people into temporary or full
unemployment. Additionally, the heavy (expected) economic
recession that will follow the pandemic might decrease the
chances of re-employment, increase the share of people in long-
term unemployment, and worsen the perspectives about the future
for those still in employment. A recent survey conducted by STATEC
on the socio-economic conditions of the lockdown allows a more
in-depth analysis of job insecurity during the hard times of the
pandemic in Luxembourg.
STATEC conducted a national survey on the social and economic impact of COVID-19 in Luxembourg. Discover the results of the survey
in this special series of Regards portraying life in lockdown, changes in perceptions, and in the employment and financial situation of
Luxembourg’s residents. This survey, launched by STATEC, was carried out in collaboration with TNS Ilres. Since the beginning of the
lockdown nearly a quarter of the resident population in Luxembourg experienced an increase in job insecurity. The fear about the future
of one’s own job concerns mainly people with secondary (45.1%) and tertiary (36.4%) education, people in the age bracket between 35
and 54, and those working from home (53.5%). The short working time imposed by the pandemic is a source of job insecurity for 1 out
of 16 residents. A decrease in income and in the ability to save money, as well a deterioration of mental and physical health are among
the main correlates of job insecurity.
72.0
3.3
24.7
0
20
40
60
80
percent
No, it has not changed Yes, it has improved Yes, it has deteriorated
Source : STATEC
1 Luechinger, S., Meier, S., & Stutzer, A. (2010). Why does unemployment hurt the
employed?: Evidence from the life satisfaction gap between the public and the
private sector. Journal of Human Resources, 45(4), 998–1045. doi:10.3368/
jhr.45.4.998
2 Clark, A. E. (2018). Four decades of the economics of happiness: where next?
Review of Income and Wealth, 64(2), 245–269. doi:10.1111/roiw.12369
3 Abay, G.A., & Chang, C. C. (2019). The association between job insecurity and
engagement of employees at work. Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health, 34(2),
96-110.
4 Netherlands, United Kingdom and Sweden are notable exceptions.
2. 2
60% of those who fear for the future of their jobs are people in
employment, whereas an additional 25% are working short-time
as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic (see figure 3). In
other words, the increased job insecurity of 1 out of 16 residents
is associated to the short working time imposed by the pandemic.
FIGURE 3 : NEARLY 60% OF THOSE WHO FEAR FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR
JOB ARE EMPLOYED
Figures also indicate that job insecurity is equally distributed
between men and women. It mainly concerns nationals, followed by
French and Portuguese immigrants. When it comes to education,
job insecurity affects people with secondary (45.1%) and tertiary
(36.4%) education the most. In terms of age, people in the age
bracket between 35 and 54 are most affected by job insecurity.
Finally, people working from home (53.5%), people with large
houses (larger than 76 and smaller than 200 square meters) and
people whose income did not change since the beginning of the
pandemic (see figure 4) are also affected by this phenomenon.
These figures match the evidence from previous studies only
partially. For instance, de Bustillo and de Pedraza (2010)⁵ document
states that people’s fear about the future of their job increases with
age, for women and for people with temporary jobs. On the other
hand, high education and wages reduce the probability of insecurity.
The mismatch between previous studies and the evidence from
Luxembourg can be the result of national specificities or of a
peculiar impact of COVID-19. To sort out this discrepancy we will
need more data, possibly comparable across countries.
FIGURE 4 : DISTRIBUTION OF JOB INSECURITY BY SELECTED SOCIO-
DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS
how much job security will change. However, it is possible to identify
the characteristics of people most insecure about their jobs and
how the pandemic might have changed the probability to be job
insecure.
FIGURE 2 : JOB INSECURITY ACROSS EUROPE IN 2015. EUROPEAN WORKING
CONDITIONS SURVEY DATA
Source : STATEC
Source : STATEC
Source : Eurofund
5 Muñoz de Bustillo, R., & De Pedraza, P. (2010). Determinants of job insecurity in
five European countries. European Journal of Industrial Relations, 16(1), 5-20.
59.7
15.8
24.6
0
20
40
60
percent
employed self−employed
short−time working
due to COVID−19
8%Slovakia
9%Malta10%
Germany
10%
Austria
11% Denmark
11% Luxembourg
12% Bulgaria
13% United Kingdom
14% France14%
Lithuania
14%
Cyprus
15%Sweden
15%Belgium
15%Finland
Slovenia28%
Spain28%
Netherlands25%
Poland
24%Italy 21%
Greece 21%
Latvia 20%
Estonia 19%
Portugal 19%
Croatia 19%
Czech
Republic17%
Hungary17%
Romania16%
Ireland16%
53.5%
19.6%
26.9%
Completely from home
Alternately from home and at you
Completely at your employer’s pr
1.2%
5.2%
16.8%
24.8%
36.6%
15.4%
less than 20 m2
20 to 49 m2
50 to 75 m2
76 to 100 m2
101 to 200 m2
more than 200 m2
1.7%
18.3%
26.8%
17.8%
18.6%
15.3%
1.4%
Primary education
Lower secondary education
Upper secondary education
Bachelor or equivalent
Master or equivalent
Doctoral or equivalent
Other
54.7%
1.1%
44.2%
no
yes, it increased
yes, it decreased
39.4%
20.3%
20.8%
1.8% 5.6%
10.6%
1.5%
Luxembourgish
Portuguese
French
German
Belgian
EU immigrant
non−EU immigrant
6.1%
20.7%
29.8%
30.2%
12.2%
1.0%
18−24 years
25−34 years
35−44 years
45−54 years
55−64 years
65−74 years
Age Nationality
EducationWorking place
Size of the houseIncome change
3. 3
FIGURE 5 : SHARE OF PEOPLE WITH CHANGING FINANCIAL AND HEALTH
CONDITIONS BY JOB SECURITY
Source : STATEC
After accounting for individual aspects, such as gender, age,
education, nationality, sector of activity, and the dimension of the
house, the decrease in income, the worsened ability to save money
and the deteriorated physical and mental health are the main
factors affected by the pandemic that can explain the increase in
job insecurity. On the other hand, there is no statistically significant
association between teleworking and job insecurity. Figure 6
indicates that experiencing income loss and a lower ability to save
money increase the probability to be job insecure by nearly 14 and
13 percentage points, respectively. Similarly, the probability to be
job insecure increased by about 10 percentage points for people
whoexperiencedworsenedphysicalandmentalhealth,respectively.
FIGURE 6 : THE CHANGES IN THE FINANCIAL AND HEALTH DOMAINS OF
PEOPLE'S LIVES PREDICT AN INCREASE IN PEOPLE'S JOB INSECURITY
The available data do not allow to say anything conclusive on the
causal relation among the considered variables. However, job
insecurityaffectsaquarteroftheresidentpopulationinLuxembourg
and it concerns employed as well as unemployed people. COVID-19
made things worse: the decrease in people’s income and ability to
save money, and the decline in mental and physical health that took
place since the beginning of the pandemic increased the probability
of job insecurity.
decreased
income
decreased
savings
deteriorated
physical health
deteriorated
mental health
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
Effectsontheprobabilitytobejobinsecure
Francesco Sarracino
Cette publication n’engage que le STATEC
Pour en savoir plus:
info@statec.etat.lu
(+352) 247-84219
www.statistiques.lu
ISSN 2304-7135
12.9 12.5
15.0
27.6
44.2
36.4
30.5
56.3
0
20
40
60
decreased
income
decreased
savings
deteriorated
physicalhealth
deteriorated
mentalhealth
decreased
income
decreased
savings
deteriorated
physicalhealth
deteriorated
mentalhealth
Percent
job secure job insecure
Source : STATEC
The data available at STATEC shows that since the beginning of
the crisis, about 13% of residents in Luxembourg experienced a
decrease in income, and in the ability to save money; 15% report
worsened physical health and 28% report deteriorated mental
health. For job insecure people these shares increase by nearly
three times (for the financial measures) and two times (for the
health related ones) (see figure 5).
