In this study, we investigated factors predictive of disconnection, or not being in education, employment, or training (NEET), among young adults with at least a 2-year college degree. We also explored the extent to which disconnection influences civic participation and well-being among NEETs with and without college degrees. The authors used 2012…

National Indigenous training and employment policy falls under the auspices of the Indigenous Advancement Strategy (IAS), an initiative which covers all facets of Indigenous social, economic, health and well-being across multiple Australian Government departments. Two of the main aims of the Jobs, Land and Economy component of the IAS are to…

The Australian economy is in transition. Its future prosperity will depend on greater economic diversification and on innovation and entrepreneurship, hallmarks of Industry 4.0. This has implications for skills development for future workers and for those needing to move into new jobs or roles. It also has a direct impact on apprenticeships--an…

Over 20 years ago, during a period of high youth unemployment, Peter Kirby recommended that a system of traineeships be adopted for disadvantaged 16- and 17-year-olds. Growth in traineeships was initially slow until the mid-1990s, when rapid growth followed a series of reforms to traineeships. The reforms included the introduction of employer…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the statistical evidence for the extent of employer training in Australia and analyse this information in the light of three major qualitative projects that have been undertaken into employer training since the mid-1990s. Design/methodology/approach: The paper reports an analysis of the major…

Competency-based training is not a singular model; it embeds radically different conceptions of competence, depending on whether delivery and assessment of training incorporate industry standards. Models that maintain a tension between the outcomes and processes of education and training, rather than a focus solely on outcomes, are most…

Inadequate conceptions of the self underlie vocational education and training policy and instruction. The concept of a socially extended self, a social being who is complex and multifaceted, is incompatible with competency-based approaches to vocational education being used in Australia. (SK)

Older workers' perspectives are examined in a national survey of the finance sector and case studies of aged care and construction workers. The majority of older workers intend to work beyond retirement age, to achieve a better lifestyle. With training, older workers could mentor younger workers. This support document includes a national survey of…

Learning for work is the focus of public policy in Australia, New Zealand, and Britain. However, meaningful public debate about the presumed benefits of training and lifelong learning has been stifled by rhetoric about competitiveness and economic survival. (SK)

Older workers' perspectives are examined in a national survey of the finance sector and case studies of aged care and construction workers. The majority of older workers intend to work beyond retirement age, to achieve a better lifestyle. With training, older workers could mentor younger workers. This support document includes a national survey of…

Older workers' perspectives are examined in a national survey of the finance sector and case studies of aged care and construction workers. The majority of older workers intend to work beyond retirement age, to achieve a better lifestyle. With training, older workers could mentor younger workers. This support document includes a national survey of…

Older workers' perspectives are examined in a national survey of the finance sector and case studies of aged care and construction workers. The majority of older workers intend to work beyond retirement age, to achieve a better lifestyle. With training, older workers could mentor younger workers. This support document includes a national survey of…

The two papers in this newsletter focus on youth employment and training programs in the United States and the government response to unemployment in Australia. In the first paper, "Looking at Other Countries, No. 1: United States. Youth Employment and Training Programs during the First Two Years of the Reagan Administration" by Ralph E.…

The subject of youth policy is discussed in three articles: youth policy developments in Western Australia, Australian Council of Trade Unions policies on youth employment and training, and an outline of developments and provisions in youth policy. (CT)

In June 2005, the Victorian State Government introduced the Regional Jobs Package (RJP)--a twelve-month pilot program that attempted to kill two social policy problems with one stone. The problems were youth unemployment and skills shortages in regional areas of Victoria, Australia. The intention of the RJP was to create a "win-win"…