From Noise to Signal: Unpacking the Drivers of Worker Mobility and Resilient Skill Structures in Swedish Local Labor Markets

The project aims to elucidate the role of skills in labor market mobility and the resilience of regions to economic shocks. It questions why certain labor market groups secure jobs not aligned with their skills due to structural constraints.

The research will explore skill-relatedness in occupations and industries, how skill combinations influence job market resilience, and regional adaptability to digital and green transitions.

Traditional analytical techniques, due to the nature of the data previously available, could only treat structural dependencies that lock individuals into certain occupations or industries as the feature of the labor market.

However, when analyzing skills, these forced enclosures generate noise in the data, as the labor market movements are determined regardless of people´s true skills.

Utilizing Sweden´s uniquely detailed administrative registers and the JobTech database (developed by Arbetsförmedlingen) of job advertisements, the project employs machine learning and network science methods to separate the noise from the signal in traditional methods of investigation.

The approach includes creating skill-relatedness networks, analyzing skill-skill networks for identifying resilient job market sectors, and evaluating regional economic structures´ robustness against external shocks like the Twin Transition.

The findings aim to offer insights into enhancing employment stability and adaptability across sectors, contributing to policymaking for more robust labor markets.

Understanding skill combinations and regional vulnerabilities to digitalization and green transitions could inform strategies mitigating adverse impacts on the workforce.

The project spans three years, involving a comprehensive literature review, data compilation using advanced analytical techniques, and formulation of empirical studies.

The project will produce scholarly articles and foster dialogue among researchers and policymakers on labor market dynamics and economic resilience.

Through this project, the research seeks to bridge gaps in the current understanding of labor market mobility and regional economic resilience, employing innovative data and methodologies to provide actionable insights for tackling future local and global challenges.