Analysing data on job turnover, labour turnover and job tenure in nine countries of central and eastern Europe over the 1990s, the authors show how labour markets have been adjusting since the demise of central planning and the introduction of legislative and institutional reforms influenced by western European models. Unlike the industrialized countries, where job tenure follows a counter-cyclical pattern determined by supply-side behaviour, most transition countries still display demand-driven, pro-cyclical patterns of tenure, suggesting a heightened perception of job insecurity. This is confirmed by counter-cyclical patterns of labour turnover and analysis of the ratio of job to labour turnover.

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