The name is absent



Flexibility and security: an asymmetrical relationship?

Diagram 2: Matrix: possible configurations of flexibility and security 4

Job security

Employment
security

Income security

Combination
security

External
numerical
flexibility

- EPL

- early

retirement

- active labour
market
policies

- unemployment
benefit

- social benefits

- minimum wage

- protection
against
dismissals
during leave

Internal
numerical
flexibility

- part-time
work

- shorter
working
week

- EPL

- LLL

- part-time

- supplementary
benefits

- sickness
benefits

- study grants

- leave schemes

- part-time
pension

Functional
flexibility

- job enrich-
ment

- training

- labour
leasing

- outsourcing

- training

- job rotation

- team work

- multiskilling

- performance-
related pay

- voluntary
working time
arrangements

Wage
flexibility

- local
adjustments
in labour
costs

- scaling or
reductions
in SS
payments

- changes in SS
payments

- employment
subsidies

- in-work
Benefits

- collective wage
agreements

- adjusted
benefits for
shorter working
week

- voluntary
working time
arrangements

However, as the above matrix illustrates, in practice, one combination is not possible — that of
external numerical flexibility and job security- whilst another two are to a greater or lesser degree
mutually exclusive: external numerical flexibility is quite incompatible with work-life balance (com-
bination security), whilst the same is true, though to a smaller degree, regarding internal numerical
/working time flexibility. Employees with family responsibilities need to have predictable (and not
long) working hours’ schedules and job stability. All other combinations are possible. Depending on
the particular national labour market regime, the emphasis on either the flexibility or security compo-
nent will vary, producing a different outcome.

The Wilthagen & Tros typology presented above has aroused some controversy as regards its
interpretation as a list of different trade-offs between forms of flexibility and security. Leschke et al.
(2006) from the transitional labour markets school focus their critique on the limitations of this matrix to

4 Wilthagen, mentioned in Eurofound, 2008a

Page • 13



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