02 Bergin Article:ESRI Vol 38

This paper investigates the factors that determine job-to-job mobility in Ireland over the period 1995 to 2001. It finds that labour market experience, working in the public sector, whether a person is overskilled, the sector they work in and their occupation are important determinants of voluntary job change. The paper finds the rate of voluntary job mobility in Ireland trebled over the period 1995 to 2000. The sample is divided into two time periods and a decomposition technique is applied to ascertain how much of the increase in mobility is attributable to compositional changes and how much is due to other factors. Compositional changes explain around one-third of the increase, while the remainder seems to reflect fundamental changes in the operation of the labour market.