contract or employment with an uncertain future. Subjective insecurity describes workers’ perceptions that job loss is possible or imminent. Thus, temporary workers, who are employed in an objectively insecure type of work, also display high levels of subjective job insecurity. Job insecurity is not solely the domain of temporary workers, however: Any worker may be concerned about the future of their job, and the incidence of job insecurity even among permanent workers is well documented (Green 2006; Bockerman 2004; De Cuyper & De Witte 2005). Hypotheses regarding perceived job characteristics mirror those of job values: workers who perceive their jobs to be secure should show a lower inclination toward temporary work than workers who feel insecure in their jobs. Also, workers who feel their jobs are interesting should exhibit a stronger desire to remain employed, even in temporary work, than enter unemployment. A related construct is employability, form “a of work specific adaptability that enables workers to identify and realize career opportunities” (Fugate, Kinicki, & Ashforth 2004: 16). Both job security and employability imply control over one’s employment outcomes. In the case of job security, workers feel that their future with their current employer is certain and predictable; in the case of employability, workers feel they would be able to easily find another job were the current job to be involuntarily lost or voluntarily abandoned. Both employability and job security indicate that the worker believes himself or herself to be in a strong labor market position (De Cuyper et al. 2008). These workers should exhibit a preference for unemployment, a seemingly low-risk endeavor for a highly employable worker, over temporary work. METHOD
contract or employment with an uncertain future. Subjective insecurity describes workers’ perceptions that job loss is possible or imminent. Thus, temporary workers, who are employed in an objectively insecure type of work, also display high levels of subjective job insecurity. Job insecurity is not solely the domain of temporary workers, however: Any worker may be concerned about the future of their job, and the incidence of job insecurity even among permanent workers is well documented (Green 2006; Bockerman 2004; De Cuyper & De Witte 2005). Hypotheses regarding perceived job characteristics mirror those of job values: workers who perceive their jobs to be secure should show a lower inclination toward temporary work than workers who feel insecure in their jobs. Also, workers who feel their jobs are interesting should exhibit a stronger desire to remain employed, even in temporary work, than enter unemployment. A related construct is employability, “a form of work specific adaptability that enables workers to identify and realize career opportunities” (Fugate, Kinicki, & Ashforth 2004: 16). Both job security and employability imply control over one’s employment outcomes. In the case of job security, workers feel that their future with their current employer is certain and predictable; in the case of employability, workers feel they would be able to easily find another job were the current job to be involuntarily lost or voluntarily abandoned. Both employability and job security indicate that the worker believes himself or herself to be in a strong labor market position (De Cuyper et al. 2008). These workers should exhibit a preference for unemployment, a seemingly low-risk endeavor for a highly employable worker, over temporary work. METHOD