Job-induced Commuting between Two Residences – Characteristics of a Multilocational Living Arrangement in the Late Modernity

Abstract

Against the background of the ongoing flexibilisation of labour markets and a rising labour force participation of (highly) qualified women, job-related commuting between a main and secondary residence has become more important in Western capitalist countries as is the case in contemporary Germany. The limited number of recent empirical studies on this kind of multilocational living arrangement almost entirely focuses on commuters in couple/family households. The main objective of this article is, firstly, to provide data about the characteristics and formation contexts of job-related multilocational household organisations as a whole, in order to make a contribution to the discussion of the forms and causes of this currently important phenomenon. Secondly, by means of comparison analyses, the multilocational form of living is compared to the group of long-distance movers, in order to provide insights into who prefers commuting to migration with the complete household under which circumstances. The article draws on data of a field research study, which have been obtained from an individual based random sample from official registers of inhabitants of four metropolises in Germany. The sample was restricted to individuals with specific characteristics (in-movers, age 25 to 59). The fully structured postal interviews were complemented by qualitative telephone interviews with selected commuters. The results show that commuters are a heterogeneous group. Living in a partnership and the social connections established thereby play a prominent role for multilocational household organisations. Among male commuters, one can distinguish between those who are young, never married and predominantly childless, on the one hand, and a group of older married commuters with children in the household, on the other. The vast majority of female commuters, however, live childless. As men commute between two residences even if they live with a family, they significantly more often have a job-related secondary residence than women. Late modern characteristics of job-related multilocational living arrangements are dual earner households for male commuters and high occupational positions for female commuters. The commuting between two accommodations is strongly connected to the career entry, on the one hand, and is also important in a later occupational career phase as a partly longer-lasting period, on the other hand. It may be suggested that the rise of fix-term employment will further increase the importance of multilocational living arrangements in Late Modernity.

Commuter couples’ life satisfaction in Korea

“…Consistent with the previous research (Reuschke, 2010), commuter couples are more likely to hold high-ranking positions. They can concentrate on their own career paths and pursue their individual preferences more compared to typical dual-earner couples (Valcour and Ladge, 2008).…”

“…This kind of living arrangement is expected to spread rapidly, especially in nations experiencing rapid economic growth (Adams, 2004). In line with this prediction, empirical research reports that commuter marriages are on the increase in many countries (e.g., Lau et al, 2012;Reuschke, 2010).…”

„Living apart together“: Sechs Typen einer heterogenen Lebensform

“…Nur wenn die Anreize der Berufstätigkeit hoch sind, steigt die Bereitschaft, die entstehenden Opportunitätskosten -d.h. vor allem getrennte Arbeitsorte -in Kauf zu nehmen (Jürges 1998). Mit einer überdurchschnittlichen Wohnortentfernung der Partner müssten folglich hohe Berufspositionen einhergehen (Reuschke 2010a(Reuschke , 2010b. Im Hinblick auf die Partnerschaftsentwicklung ist zumindest von einer Verzögerung der Kohabitation auszugehen.…”

“…Zudem kann LAT aufgrund berufsbedingter Erfordernisse eingegangen werden, wenn die Arbeitsorte der Partner zu weit auseinander liegen, um zu einem gemeinsamen Lebensmittelpunkt zu pendeln. Insbesondere bei diesem zweiten Typ ist zu erwarten, dass er infolge der zunehmenden Mobilitätserfordernisse auf dem Arbeitsmarkt immer häufiger vorzufinden ist (Reuschke 2010a(Reuschke , 2010b. Ferner besteht die Möglichkeit, dass diese Lebensform eine Art "Beziehungsideal" darstellt.…”

Experiences of non-resident nurses in Australia's remote Northern Territory

“…Non-resident labour live in multiple worlds 4 -the world of work, the world 'at home', and the commuting world in between. Both social and professional capabilities and adaptations are affected by the movement between these worlds 5 .…”