Education training and employment dynamics. Transitional labour markets in the European Union

Book abstract:

To be or not to be? Who you are or where you came from may be the question that determines your route through the transitional labour markets and your opportunity or capacity to enjoy the fruits of social cohesion and inclusivity according to this latest volume in Edward Elgar's 'Labour Markets and Employment Policies' series.

The volume is organised in four parts that mirror the life course through the transitional labour markets. Part I addresses parental influences on children's educational choices and exits from initial full-time education and entry into the transitions of the labour market. Part II moves on to discuss experiences within the labour market including further training and attainment, unemployment and re-entry to employment. What is the impact of training interventions and government led programmes towards the unemployed? How do these policies influence social integration and social exclusion? Part III explores the incidence and impact of enterprise-based training and the close relationship between wages and productivity in influencing training decisions - the pay back! Are the social costs and benefits of enterprise based training significant factors to be weighed in the evaluation of such programmes and therefore should there be state intervention to organise and finance training? The players in the field of training, and their aims and strategies are examined in Part IV. Case studies investigate the formulation and implementation of training policies in negotiations between the social partners at the level of the enterprise, and in the relationship between local, regional and national players and the institutions of the European Union. The final chapter draws conclusions that endeavour to point the way forward for policy makers in this arena.

The book draws upon the theoretical and empirical approaches of three social science disciplines: the economics of education and the labour market, the sociology of education and inequality, and the actor-centred approach of multilevel governance from political science.

The work will be of particular interest to students, academics, practitioners and politicians in the fields of labour market economics, social sciences and human resource development within the European Union.

Klaus Schömann is a Senior Research Fellow at the Social Science Research Center, Berlin, Germany. Philip J O'Connell is a Senior Research Officer at the Economic and Social Research Institute, Dublin, Ireland.