Rasionalitas Kaum Muda Bekerja di Kafe Tjangkir Kuppi Kaliwates Jember di Era Ketidakpastian Pasar Kerja

Abstract

This research is motivated by the increasingly competitive and uncertain labor market conditions, characterized by limited formal employment opportunities and intense job competition. These circumstances have encouraged young people to adopt more adaptive and realistic approaches in making employment decisions, including working in the café sector. This study aims to describe the rationality of young people in choosing to work at Tjangkir Kuppi Café, Kaliwates, Jember, amid labor market uncertainty. The study employed a qualitative approach using a phenomenological research design. Informants were selected through purposive sampling, while data were collected through participant observation, in- depth interviews, and documentation. Data validity was ensured through source triangulation and analyzed through data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. The analysis was guided by James S. Coleman's Rational Choice Theory. The findings reveal that the decision of young people to work at Tjangkir Kuppi Café constitutes a rational action based on considerations of economic needs, self-development, the expansion of social networks, and work-time flexibility. Various resources, including prior experience, skills, knowledge, and willingness to learn, are utilized as adaptive strategies in coping with labor market uncertainty. This study concludes that working in a café represents a form of contextual rationality and an adaptive strategy employed by young people in responding to the dynamics of the contemporary labor market.