oa Crisis in de postindustriële stad?

Crisis in the Post-Industrial City?Analysing the Impact of Post-Industrialism and Creativity on Unemployment among the Less Educated in Dutch Cities during the Crisis (2008-2012)

Former industrial strongholds have to cope with higher unemployment levels among the less educated than service-oriented urban economies. Two explanations that can account for this firmly-established pattern – the polarisation thesis and the creativity thesis – inspire contrasting hypotheses on how it will develop during the current crisis. According to the first it is expected to wither, while the second predicts that it will grow in salience. An empirical assessment on unemployment levels among the less educated in Dutch cities during the time-span 2008-2012 yields findings in line with the first expectation. The implications of the results for post-crisis urban economic developments are discussed.