International Conference

Productivity, Investment in Human Capitaland the Challenge of Youth Employment

VET as a policy for youth employment

Aviana BulgarelliISFOL Director General

Bergamo (Italy) 16-17 December 2010

• Skills needs forecasting for the next decade show that knowledge and skills intensive occupations will be on the rise and that the demand for those with high and medium qualification will increase at the expense of low qualified people (Cedefop)

• VET plays a key role in determining competitiveness. Europe will grow on the basis of the quality of goods and services it provides. This requires a highly skilled labour force

Knowledge – and skills – intensive jobs on the rise

More people with better qualifications

• Current and future jobs require medium and high skills level. The low qualified are penalised in the labour market. Low qualified youth risk to be marginalized

Positive relation between education and employment (2008)This chart shows the percentage of 25-64 year-olds in employment,

by level of educational attainment.

Data on employment by work status refer to the period 2008Q2 to 2009Q2.Source: OECD

-2.2-3.0

-1.2

-8.4

-2.2

1.7

-6.4

-3.1

1.1

-2.1

-0.6

-7.7

-10

-8

-6

-4

-2

0

2

4

Tota

l

Men

Wom

en

Yout

h (1

5-24

)

Prim

e-ag

e (2

5-54

)

Old

er w

orke

rs (5

5+)

Low

-ski

lled

Med

ium

-ski

lled

Hig

h-sk

illed

Self-

empl

oyed

Perm

anen

t wor

kers

Tem

pora

ry w

orke

rs

Gender Age Education Work status

Job losses have been concentrated among youth, the low-skilled and men

Percentage change of employment over 2008 Q4 to 2009 Q4*

Vet as a policy for youth employment (Bruges Comuniqué and trends in EU countries)

• Need for an attractive VET system at secondary and tertiary level capable to respond to the changing requirements of the labour market. Overcome the tendency of VET institutions to develop their own dynamic, independent of the world of work and unresponsive to rapid change in the needs of the economy

• Need to adapt VET content, infrastructure and methods in order to keep pace and to anticipate with shifts to new production technologies and work organization

• VET should not prepare students only for a single occupation. Most young people face a sequence of complex choices and changes over a lifetime of learning and work. Young people should be equipped with a right mix of basic and specific skills

• Need to develop innovative learning methods and flexible learning pathways including work based learning

• Work-based learning, including apprenticeship, is a way for people to develop their potential. It contributes to developing a professional identity and can boost the self-esteem also of those who might otherwise see themselves as failures. It is a learning pathway for excellence an innovation, and for inclusion.

• Workplaces provide a strong learning environment for both transversal and specific skills

• Need to create opportunities for enhanced cooperation between VET institutions and enterprises (apprenticeship and internship). Quality control should be agreed on as to avoid that workplace learning can degenerate into cheap labour

• Need to encourage VET institutions to collaborate with innovative enterprises in forming “knowledge partnerships” to develop excellence and innovation

18-24 25-29 Total 18-29

The available jobs require fewer training 24,4 27,0 25,4

The available jobs require further training 48,0 44,1 46,5

The distance from the work places 38,3 31,5 35,6

Lack of previous work experience 56,8 46,8 52,9

Age discrimination 17,3 15,5 16,6

Sex discrimination 8,2 11,8 9,6

Unsatisfactory jobs 52,1 52,5 52,3

data source Isfol PLUS 2008

Difficulties in finding a job, multiple answers,% affirmative answers

Data source Isfol PLUS 2008

Early leavers from education and training 2003-2009* (%)

Drop out reasons by age

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

18-29 30-39 40-49 50-64

job opportunity family problems

low performance in studies Not interest in the course of study

Data source Isfol PLUS 2008

Data source Isfol PLUS 2008

Secondary school options by marks at the exit of compulsory education 

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Istitutiprofessionali

Liceoclassico

Liceoscientifico

Istruzioneartistica

Istituti tecnici Istitutimagistrali

medium-high marks

medium-low marks

• VET is important for youth employability, career development and economic growth but has been neglected

• It is still seen as a low status education pathway

• Need to encourage practical activities and the provision of high-quality information and guidance which unable young pupils in compulsory education, and their parents, to become acquainted with different vocational trades and career possibilities

• Need to increase public awareness of the possibilities which VET offers, organize activities aimed at promoting VET attractiveness and excellence (campaigns and skills competitions)

Thank you

www.isfol.it

Percentage of 15-19 year-olds not in education and unemployedor not in the labour force (2008)

Post compulsory education options, by types and career, %

continue their

studies

look for a job

take over a family

business

other answers

I do not know

study and work

togetherTotal

Liceo classico 94,6 4,3 - 0,2 0,9 - 100Liceo scientifico 89,8 3,4 1,3 - 5,5 - 100Istruzione artistica 77,3 9,4 2,1 - 11,2 - 100Istituti magistrali 84,6 9 - - 6,4 - 100Istituti tecnici 50,6 39,3 2,1 - 7,9 0,1 100Istituti professionali 42,3 52,5 - - 5,2 - 100

medium-high marks 79,2 14,2 1,1 - 5,4 0,1 100medium-low marks 47,9 41,1 2,2 0,1 8,7 - 100regular studies 74,7 18,3 1,1 0 5,9 - 100failures 47,3 38,8 3,5 - 10,1 0,4 100

Types of Secondary school

Scholar Career

Data source Isfol PLUS 2008

-

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Primary school (Licenza media) Secondary school (Diploma)

job opportunity family problems low performance in studies Not interest in the course of study

Drop out of primary and secondary school by reasons (18-29)

Data source Isfol PLUS 2008