Governments, airlines and employees: an evolving relationship from 1940 to 2010

Abstract

Although lateral hiring (LH) has increasingly come to characterize today's global labor market, past studies have largely overlooked how the practice unfolds as industry structure evolves. This article draws on the human capital theory to examine the evolution of LH and skills formations in the global airline industry from 1940 to 2010. This historical narrative identifies and distinguishes four distinct phases (i.e. golden, human-factor, embryonic and ‘war for talent’) that shed light on the changes in the industry facilitated by deregulation and liberalization. The phases also elucidate the processes and factors that precipitate the fundamental shift from government-funded to employer-funded and then to largely employee-funded training that has emerged to characterize the industry. The implications and contributions to management history are examined.