Subemployment

Subemployment Definition

Subemployment is a sociological concept, developed by Braverman, used to describe individuals who are not in full employment but do not register as officially unemployed within standard statistical measures. This category captures those whose labour market participation is incomplete or precarious, often masking underlying economic inequalities that official unemployment statistics fail to capture.

Components of Subemployment

The group defined by subemployment encompasses several distinct categories of workers:

Long-Term Unemployed

This group includes individuals who have ceased actively seeking employment and consequently stop registering as unemployed, despite still being economically inactive or underemployed. This demographic is disproportionately represented within the Black and Hispanic populations.

Part-Time Workers

Subemployment also includes those engaged in part-time work, which often correlates with lower wages and reduced overall economic security compared to full-time employment.

Underpaid Labourers

Furthermore, subemployment accounts for individuals who are paid below the legally mandated minimum wage, a group that frequently overlaps with undocumented or illegal immigrants.