Report that presents research into the issue of youth unemployment in the UK. Rather than potential macroeconomic and global causes, it is concerned with the way the education system and labour market have been shaped by policy so as to produce what we describe as a 'young person’s penalty'.
Briefing paper which examines the challenges to economic policy, and to employers, some of whom are already experiencing labour shortages, which will increase with the retirement of the large age cohorts born in the 1940s and 1950s.
The aims of this project were to use case studies of companies, to obtain a better understanding of the links between employers’ product markets strategies and the demand for skills. It sought to identify the conditions and constraints in which firms’ product market strategies affect skills utilisation, and explore the potential implications for public policy.
Paper examining evidence that people from black and minority ethnic communities benefit less than the wider population from mental health employment services and making some suggestions for improving this situation.
This research examines the labour market performance of Britain’s ethnic minorities. In particular, it emphasises the diversity of their experience and the dynamic change in the relative positions of ethnic groups between 1991 and 2001. While some groups have improved their labour market position relative to white people, substantial disadvantage remains, both in access to jobs and in earnings once in employment.
This working paper reviews the evidence on the impact of the last three economic recessions on the PSA 8 (indicator 2) disadvantaged groups (that is, disabled people, ethnic minorities, lone parents, people aged 50 and over, the 15 per cent lowest qualified, and those living in the most deprived local authority wards), as well as ex-offenders and the self-employed.
Report assessing the effects of economic recession on different social groups in the UK. It concludes that young people, men and those living in deprived areas are worst affected and recommends that retraining and upskilling should be carried out to enable people to compete successfully in the labour market.
Study investigating how women's life stages and work and family experiences affect their long-term financial needs and how the changing role of women in society impacts on these.
Paper highlighting the 'skills paradox' in the UK whereby those lacking basic skills are least likely to participate in formal learning. It identifies policies which can help rectify this trend and argues for a coherent skills strategy which takes equally into account the labour market, the training system and people's everyday lives.
Paper offering a critique of the New Deal scheme for the unemployed in the UK. It argues that the policy can be made more effective if the structure of the welfare-to-work system is changed to more closely reflect economic realities. It recommends aligning the institutions of the welfare-to-work system with the needs of employers and the disadvantaged which should have the effect of providing better jobs for the low-skilled and better workers for the private sector.