Coworker networks and the role of occupations in job finding

Abstract

Which former coworkers help displaced workers find jobs? We answer this question by studying occupational similarity in job finding networks. Using matched employer–employee data from Hungary, this paper relates the unemployment duration of displaced workers to the employment rate within their former coworker networks. We find that only coworkers from the same narrow occupation are helpful in job finding, while those from different occupations are not. This effect lasts for a few months after displacement and is primarily driven by former coworkers in occupations requiring at most a primary level of education.