ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the next chapters. The part contrasts the structure of the labor market in North America with that in Western Europe and Japan, and traces differences in the level of unemployment in these two groups of countries to differences in the institutions through which jobs are secured against fluctuations in demand. It introduces the concept of industrial marginality and shows how the market, structured by the characteristics of the demand for labor, uses various marginal groups to adjust to these structural conditions. The part explores the implications of the behavior of these marginal groups for wage determination, and shows how the characteristics of marginal workers produce unexpected patterns of wage behavior even in a competitive market. The three pieces examine particular groups of marginal workers: youth, foreign workers, and welfare households.
