49Occupational Trajectories
Occupational trajectories across the three countries may influence how
personal networks are formed, either by stressing the workplace as a place
of sociability and friendship or by creating an environment for individu-
als to develop or maintain sociability unrelated to work, e.g. in joint lei-
sure spending or sports. They also reflect different levels of participation
of women in the labour market, which produce different models of con-
jugal division of paid work, and therefore give rise to different constraints
on, and opportunities for, personal relationships.
To identify occupational trajectories, we employed an analytical strat-
egy which examines the trajectories of Lithuanians, Portuguese, and the
Swiss together. In a second stage we look at the structural differences in
these trajectories by country, birth cohort, and gender. Methodologically,
our approach is based on sequence analysis and optimal matching tech-
niques (Gauthier 2013 ). Our analysis covers the period from ages 16 to
- This timeframe was chosen because it allows for comparisons
between individuals from both cohorts. Six types of occupational trajec-
tories were identified (Fig. 2.1). Early full-time is the most common
type (46.3%). Most individuals who follow this trajectory joined the
labour market by their 16th birthday and were already in full-time jobs.
Except for the period between 20–23 years of age, when a few men were
conscripted into military service, they remained gainfully employed and
in full-time jobs throughout the period. Late full-time (28.3%) is the
second most common type. In this case, longer educational careers lead
to later transitions into work: most enter the labour market after
21 years of age.
Individuals who follow At home trajectories amount to 11.0% of the
sample. Although some were doing housework by the end of the period
in question, about half were previously in the labour market with full-
time jobs. Most of them transitioned in and out of the labour market
between their late teens and early twenties. About 6.8% of individuals
followed Erratic employment trajectories. This trajectory type encom-
passes very diverse and bumpy paths, which include several transitions
between full-time jobs, higher part-time jobs, and unemployment.
Contextualising Personal Networks Across Birth Cohorts...