Job insecurity amid the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: a systematic review and research agenda
| Date | 15 July 2024 |
| Pages | 1141-1171 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-09-2023-0491 |
| Published date | 15 July 2024 |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Industrial/labour relations,Employment law |
| Author | Himanshu Gupta,Rajib Lochan Dhar |
Job insecurity amid the COVID-19
pandemic and beyond: a systematic
review and research agenda
Himanshu Gupta and Rajib Lochan Dhar
Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee,
Roorkee, India
Abstract
Purpose –The catastrophic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have considerably impacted the labour market
and increased job insecurity among workers. This study systematically reviews the literature on job insecurity
conducted in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic with three key objectives. First, to identify the key
antecedents of job insecurity during the pandemic. Second, to identify the outcomes associated with job
insecurity during the pandemic. Third, to identify the underlying boundary conditions that strengthened or
alleviated the association between the antecedents of job insecurity and its associated outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach –The study followed PRISMA 2020 guidelines for the selection and
inclusion of scientific literature by systematically searching five electronic databases, namely, Scopus,
ScienceDirect, PubMed, Web of Science and Psych Info.
Findings –A perception of health-related risks, negative economic consequences and organizational
restructuring during the pandemic werethe primary factors contributing to job insecurity among workers. The
consequences encompassed detrimental impacts on health and well-being, proactive measures undertaken by
employees to alleviate the threat of job loss, and a variety of tactics employed to cope with stress arising from
job insecurity. The boundary conditions elucidate the factors thatalleviated job insecurity among workers and
influenced both their work and non-work outcomes.
Originality/value –This is the firstsystematic review summarizing the literatureon employees’experiences
withjob insecurity amidthe COVID-19 pandemic.Based on a systematicreview, this studyprovides doablesteps
that HR managerscan take to effectivelymanage job insecurity amongworkers, particularlyduring a crisis.
Keywords Job insecurity, COVID-19 pandemic, Economic crisis, Systematic review,
Management implications
Paper type Literature review
Introduction
A global health emergency known as the COVID-19 pandemic affected every aspect of human
life and had a wide range of negative economic, social, and psychological consequences. The
suspension of economic activity caused by preventive measures taken by governments, such
as lockdowns, contributed to the escalation of the health catastrophe into an economic crisis,
which then manifested as economic stress among individuals (Sinclair et al., 2021). The
pandemic had a tremendous impact on the global labour market, and the high increase in
unemployment during that time caused a considerable increase in job insecurity among
workers (Blustein et al., 2020;ILO, 2020;Lian et al., 2022). “Job insecurity”(JI) has been
recognized as one of the key stressors among workers during the pandemic (Rudolph
et al., 2021).
Job insecurity is a subjective phenomenon in which workers feel the possibility of losing their
jobs. It exists on a continuum between employment and unemployment (De Witte, 2005;Shoss,
2017). The more marginalized the worker is, the closer he or she is to unemployment on the
continuum. The seminalarticle on job insecurity by Greenhalgh and Rosenblatt (1984) was the
first to operationalize it as a separate construct. Since then, the topic has received significant
attention and scientific research in this area has seen significant growth. While there exist
multiple definitions of job insecurity today, scholars draw a consensus that it is a psychological
Employee
Relations: The
International
Journal
1141
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/0142-5455.htm
Received 25 September 2023
Revised 29 February 2024
7 June 2024
Accepted 10 June 2024
Employee Relations: The
International Journal
Vol. 46 No. 5, 2024
pp. 1141-1171
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0142-5455
DOI 10.1108/ER-09-2023-0491
stressor with a wide range of negative consequences (Shoss, 2017;Lee et al., 2018). Furthermore,
multiple studies have repeatedly evidenced that job insecurity has adverse impacts on both
psychological and physiological health (De Witte et al., 2016;Llosa et al., 2018), work-related
outcomes such as decreased job performance and commitment towards the organization (Lee
et al., 2018;Shoss, 2017;Sverke et al., 2019), as well as macroeconomic behaviours such as
reduced consumption (Lozza et al., 2013), family planning such as having a child or delaying
marriages (Chirumbolo et al., 2021), among others. Furthermore, researchers have demonstrated
that the negative consequences of a fear of job loss outweigh those of not having a job at all (Kim
and Von Dem Knesebeck, 2015). Given the extensive array of adverse outcomes associated with
job insecurity, it has consistently constituted a pivotal occupational stressor and a subject of
utmost scholarly investigation. Nevertheless, its prominence has escalated in light of the
pandemic, owing to the substantial surge in job security concerns among workers (Hughes et al.,
2023;Rudolph et al., 2021). Furthermore, the layoffs and heightened unemployment during the
pandemic have not only contributed to increased job insecurity among workers, but the labour
market crisis brought on by the pandemic has also led to workers experiencing reduced
employability (Khan et al., 2021). The dual threats of job insecurity and reduced employability
contributed to a synergistic stressor among the workers. Additionally, in light of the pandemic,
some organisations opted to furlough their employees rather than fully terminate them
(Chapman et al., 2020;Ballesteros-Leiva et al., 2023). Consequently, those employees who were
placed on furlough held the expectation that they would be rehired upon the improvement of the
economic situation. Without exception, these factors were entirely unique amid the COVID-19
pandemic and had not been observed in any previous studies. Leading organisational
researchers have also drawn attention to this exceptional phenomenon associated with job
insecurity amidst the unprecedented crisis (Rudolph et al., 2021). Therefore, the experiences of
job insecurity among workers during the pandemic may differ substantially from those of
individuals who have endured similar circumstances previously. Thus, the present review aims
to systematically synthesise all scientific literature and studies on job insecurity conducted
amidst the COVID-19 pandemic to better understand employees’unique experiences with job
insecurity amid the unprecedented crisis. Furthermore, this will offer valuable managerial
insights for effectively managing employees’job insecurity, particularly during a crisis and
facilitate the redevelopment of organizational policies in order to better prepare for future crises.
The present review provides a systematic synthesis of the literature with the following
research objectives:
RQ1. To identify the key antecedents that have contributed to job insecurity among
workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
RQ2. To identify the outcomes attached to the experiences of job insecurity amid the
COVID-19 pandemic.
RQ3. To identify the boundary conditions that accentuated or alleviated the association
between the antecedents of job insecurity and its associated outcomes amid the
COVID-19 pandemic.
By addressing these research objectives, the study will contribute to the job insecurity
literature and improve the understanding of job insecurity literature, particularly during a
crisis. Furthermore, it also provides useful theoretical and managerial insights for efficiently
addressing and managing employees’job insecurity during a crisis.
Job insecurity definition
Job insecurity is defined as “perceived powerlessness to maintain desired continuity in a
threatened job situation”(Greenhalgh and Rosenblatt, 1984, p. 438) or “an overall concern
ER
46,5
1142
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeStart Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
