A mixed-methods approach to understanding dual insecurity: examining Crete’s labour market

Abstract The growth of precarious employment and the associated occurrence of job and income insecurity have been a concerning phenomenon for several decades. The present study uses a mixed-methods design to analyse the evolvement of income and job insecurity in a period characterized by the recent economic and global health crises, for the case of the Greek island of Crete, whose economy is based on traditional sectors. Job insecurity is qualitatively assessed through the use of focus groups, while economic insecurity is empirically assessed through the use of quantitative data and a logit model. We then simultaneously interpret the results to identify the convergence, divergence, and relationships involved in different labour groups. Our results indicate that job and economic insecurity have undergone a continuous degradation for seasonally employed workers, possibly explaining the labour force migration into other sectors and a recent unmet workforce demand. In addition, this research identifies that the increased demand for labour-intensive lower and middle-skilled jobs, along with the opaque hiring processes of patrimonialist enterprises, exacerbate dual insecurity for the labour force. This study further puts forward labour market policy improvements and provides the ground for new policy developments.