Work

It’s Who You Know: The Role of Social Networks in a Changing Labor Market

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: Teacher labor markets are evolving across the United States. The rise of charter schools, alternative teacher certification, and portfolio districts are transforming teachers' access to employment, changing the way they search for and apply for jobs, and may also change the role that social networks play in the job search. However, we know little about how teachers use their networks to find jobs, particularly in increasingly fragmented local labor markets. We draw on interviews with 127 teachers in three districts chosen to reflect an increasing presence of charter schools: New Orleans, Detroit, and San Antonio. We find that the extent of fragmentation in a city's labor market drives the use of networks, with important implications for job access and equity.

Source: American Educational Research Journal

DOI: 10.3102/0002831219879092

Authors: Huriya Jabbar, Marisa Cannata, Emily Germain, Andrene Castro

Institutions: The University of Texas at Austin, Vanderbilt University

Language: English

Topic: Teacher Professional Development and Motivation

Subfield: Education

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Quality education, Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Academy of Education, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development