Internet Job Search and the Effect on Unemployment Duration

Internet Job Search and the Effect on Unemployment Duration

Abstract

Jobseeker behavior changed in 1990's with the introduction of non-traditional methods of searching for a job such as the Internet. Online search methods have replaced many of the traditional methods of searching for a job. In August 2000, one in four unemployed U.S. job seekers reported that they use the Internet as a method of searching for employment. Which types of persons used the Internet as a primary source to search for a job, and did searching for work online help find new jobs faster? These questions are addressed by evaluating data of unemployment durations during the last twenty years from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Job search methods of unemployed workers changed in the 1990's with the introduction of online job search methods. Prior to that, the primary methods of searching for a job were by traditional methods such as the newspaper, friends, relatives, etc. There are currently thousands of online job search sites that are used by an increasingly amount of unemployed workers. The use of Internet and recruiting sites is generally free of cost for searchers and usually cheaper for firms compared to traditional print advertisements. Job searchers can view job listings as well as company information with relative ease and have potential job matches sent to them directly via E-mail.

According to the Current Population Survey, about 19.6 million individuals, or 9.2 percent of the civilian non-institutional population ages 16 and over, reported using the Internet to search for a job between January 2001 and September 2001. Men and women were about equally likely to have used the Internet to search for a job and nearly 1 in every 10 reported using the Internet to look for a job. Similarly, about 9 percent of both whites...