Multiple Jobholders: A Small but Important Bellwether

A "multiple-job holder" is a person who earns a wage from more than one employer during a calendar quarter. The two most typical types of multiple-job holder are individuals who legitimately hold two jobs at the same time - perhaps a full-time position during the week and a part-time job on the weekend - and individuals who switch between employers during the same calendar quarter.

Employment trends for single- and multiple-job holders in Oregon have differed over the last decade. While single-job holders certainly lost jobs during both recessions, multiple-job holders actually lost more ground on a percentage basis. At the depth of the most recent recession, the number of individuals who held two jobs had fallen to just 77 percent of the count from 2001, while the number of individuals with just one job never fell below employment levels from the year 2001.

There are many plausible explanations for why multiple-job holders may be "hit harder" during recessionary periods. It seems likely that many people who hold multiple jobs work part-time for at least one of those employers, which may mean their position becomes a target of layoffs as their employer tries to reduce costs while maintaining its full-time workforce during a downturn. Another explanation is that as the economy goes into a slump, workers stop trying to switch between jobs as often and as a result the number of social security numbers being reported by two employers during a quarter goes down.
  
Get more details in the full article at QualityInfo, which was written by Charlie Johnson.