LABOR-MARKET INCENTIVE STRUCTURES AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE

This paper uses data from the International Social Science Programme Work Orientations Module to investigate whether there is empirical support for Soskice's (1990, 1991) hypothesis that there is a difference in labour market incentive structures between northern European 'flexibly co-ordinated' systems and the 'uncoordinated' or 'deregulated' systems of the UK and the USA, which generates improved employee co-operation and performance in the former. Labour markets in 'uncoordinated' systems are found to generate the better employee work performance. Little support is found for the existence of a 'flexibly co-ordinated' type of labour market incentive structure. Instead, labour market incentive structures are found to be heterogeneous.