ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author discusses some of the main conceptions of labor market structures, and how they have influenced research and thinking about careers. He summarizes three approaches to labor markets: dualism; segmentation; and flexibility. The idea of labor market dualism expanded beyond ghetto labor markets to include the analysis of national labor markets in advanced industrial societies, and the micro-level dual labor market theory was linked to the macro-level dual economy theory. The author speculates on some implications of current changes for future labor market structures and various career-related outcomes. Organizations' needs for numerical/employment flexibility are also likely to continue into the future. At the same time that employers are increasingly likely to need a more flexible workforce, labor force trends in the United States are tending to produce a more inflexible labor force. Women workers may more often seek permanent employment in the future, making them less available for part-time and temporary work.
