With Jonathan Payne at DMU I’m leading a strand of DMU’s 2015 Policy Commission on young people and employment. We met for the first time today to outline the work that we might do together with eight undergraduate and postgraduate students. The students focused on the following.
- What could be done with schools and in schools around the experience of young people and the labour market?
- What needs to be done about precarity and zero-hour contracts?
- How might learning and training be made hands-on or experiential?
- How might funding be found for study and training?
- What is the role of businesses?
- What is the role of apprenticeships?
- Why is there no Minister of State for Young People?
- How do we analyse the value of work and worthless work?
- What is the role of regulation?
- Can we map out stakeholder responsibilities related to young people and work or employment?
In terms of organising the strand there are two events coming-up: a big brunch on 12 February at noon-2pm; and an event in the DMU Festival of Ideas in w/c 17 March. Attendees should contact the DMU Events Office. Questions relating to this strand should be emailed to the Policy Commission.
However, we will meet to discuss Young People and Employment from 10-11am each Tuesday for the next six weeks in Hugh Aston 2.38. All DMU students are welcome.
The twitter hash tag is for the DMU 2015 Policy Commission is #dmu100
References
Jonathan and I have pulled together some references.
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. (2012). Engaging Employers in Tackling Youth Unemployment, London: CIPD.
Gutman, L. M., and Akerman, R. (2008). ‘Determinants of aspirations’, Centre for the Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning Research Report No. 27, London: Institute of Education, CRWBL.
Hamilton, V. 2012. ‘Career Pathways and Cluster Skills Development: Promising Models from the US’, OECD LEED Working Papers, 2012/14, Paris: OECD. Available [online] at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5k94g1s6f7td-en
Institute for Fiscal Studies (on work, employment and pay).
The Intergenerational Foundation (established to research fairness between the generations. IF believes that, whilst increasing longevity is welcome, government policy must be fair to all generations – whether old, young or those to come).
Keep, E. (2012). ‘Education and Industry: taking two steps back and reflecting’, Journal of Education and Work, Vol. 24, No. 4, 357-379.
Michael Roberts’ blog, The Next Recession, for an alternative view on employment, wages and work.
New Economics Foundation (2010). 21 hours.
Novara FM podcasts on 21st Century work, precarious employment, real wages and economic growth in a service economy.
Social enterprise at the University of Northampton.
UK Commission for Employment and Skills.
Van Parijs, P (2005). Basic Income: A simple and powerful idea for the twenty-first century.
Weeks, K. (2011). The Problem with Work: Feminism, Marxism, Antiwork Politics, and Postwork Imaginaries.
Wolf, A. (2011). Review of Vocational Education – The Wolf Report, London: Department for Education. Available [online] at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-vocational-education-the-wolf-report
Work Foundation website on youth and employment.
Zerohedge on the student debt bubble.
The 3Cosas Campaign for equality of terms and conditions between the University of London’s direct employees, and its outsourced workers.