Is Britain such a bad place to work? The level and dispersion of job quality in comparative European perspective

LLAKES Research Paper 40 by Francis Green (Institute of Education, University of London and Centre for Learning and Life Chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies (LLAKES))

Abstract

This paper questions the view that jobs in Britain are on average of low quality relative to those in comparator nations in Europe. Using the European Labour Force Survey and a new comparative survey by the European Foundation for Living and Working Conditions, I investigate four core dimensions of job quality: monthly earnings, the prospects of a job (security and promotion prospects), intrinsic job quality (skills, social relationships, environmental factors, work intensity) and working time quality. I find that:

• On the down side, British workplaces are exceptional in that monthly earnings are much more unequal than elsewhere in Europe.
• Yet, in terms of the three other core dimensions of job quality Britain’s jobs are not unduly unequal, unless one chooses to compare with a Nordic country.
• Moreover, on average Britain has quite high job quality in all four dimensions, consistent with, though not necessarily caused by, its comparative affluence.
• The much cited proposition that “Britons work the longest hours in Europe” is a myth. When all workers are properly included, Britain’s average work week in 2011 ranked 23rd out of 27 EU countries. The kernel of truth behind the proposition is that male full-time employees worked the longest hours. Even so, a relatively high proportion of jobs in Britain offer employees flexibility in their work hours.

This comparative picture supports a policy priority focussed on actions to reduce wage inequality. Nevertheless the findings need not encourage complacency from policy developers in respect of other aspects of job quality, which may be under threat in an era of economic stagnation.

Full text (PDF 26pp)

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Skills for Prosperity? A review of OECD and Partner Country Skill Strategies

a LLAKES (Centre for Learning and Life Chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies) Research Paper (Number 39) by Mike Campbell

Abstract

This paper provides a high level overview of the skills strategies being pursued by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and partner countries, based on a review undertaken by the author for OECD as part of the development of its skills strategy (Better Skills, Better Jobs, Better Lives) in 2012.

It first discusses their rationale and imperatives before reviewing their coverage in terms of approach, scope and focus.

It then examines the range of policy levers utilised to raise skill levels, improve supply and demand matching, and enhance skills demand and use.

The sectoral and local dimensions of skills strategies are then discussed before an assessment is made of governance arrangements in terms of the mechanisms used to steer strategy, including both institutional arrangements and other tools to improve policy co-ordination.

The paper concludes by identifying some lessons learned from the review, for the development of more effective skills strategies in the future.

Full report (PDF 70pp)

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Education and skills policy for the knowledge economy: insights from territorial innovation models and territorial knowledge dynamics

Laura James (LLAKES Centre, Institute of Education, University of London) published in European Planning Studies Volume 20 Issue 11 (November 2012)

Abstract

This article explores the conceptualisations of learning that underpin conventional education and skills policy for the knowledge economy and those which underpin territorial innovation models (TIMs) and the territorial knowledge dynamics (TKD) approach.

The TIM literature has been very influential in the area of regional development policy and frequently discusses concepts such as learning, knowledge creation and skills or competencies.

Despite this, it has had little impact on skills and education policy-making in the UK or elsewhere in Europe.

This article uses the UK as a case study and explores the implications of TIMs and TKD for national education and skills policies in the context of the knowledge economy. In conventional skills policy, learning for the knowledge economy has been conceptualised primarily as individuals acquiring credentialised knowledge or skills through formal education and training, which are then transferred into the economy as they move through the labour market.

This article argues that TIMs offer a quite different perspective on learning for the knowledge economy, which focuses on the relationship between firms, regions and institutions. More recently, the notion of TKD has been developed, particularly through the FP6 EURODITE project, and represents the extension and update to the TIM literature.

This article argues that the TKD concept has important implications for the development of appropriate education and skills policies for the knowledge economy in European countries.

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