Transitions to employment of young people in Indonesia

Abstract

The aim of this research is to examine transition pathways to employment of young Indonesian men and women between 1997 and 2014. Longitudinal Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS) data are used to investigate these pathways among cohorts of young people aged 15-29 years as at 1997 in the context of demographic changes. Although Indonesia has the largest economy and youth population in the Southeast Asian region, the country exhibits high youth unemployment. This research provides important insights into youth employment for both men and women, examining their transition patterns and life course experiences. The results of this research show that educated men with high school or higher qualifications steadily moved into service sector jobs, while men with junior high school and lower educational attainment faced more fluctuations. Women experienced a range of transition pathways but mainly fall into four transition patterns. Women with tertiary education continued to work without much interruption due to marriage, while those with less than tertiary education usually stopped working. The results of estimating women's working life expectancy show that tertiary educated women had the longest lifetime working durations. Working women with junior high school and less educational attainment had the shortest working life expectancies despite their early entry into the labour force. These findings support the human capital theory that education has a stronger influence on work expectancy than previous work experience. Life course theory provides a useful framework to cover many factors involved in the young people's pathways. This research contributes to understanding the employment pathways for men and women. Providing more support in occupational skill development for women with less than high school is recommended so that they can become more productive workers for the benefit of the country.