The Dawkins white paper of 1988 was introduced by the Australian government to reshape the Higher Education (HE) landscape. Dawkins' discussion paper of 1990, Nelson's policy document of 2003, the Bradley Review of 2008 and the Lomax-Smith Review of 2011 built on and extended Dawkins' white paper. Such policy reforms have transformed the culture…

Since 2006 there have been significant changes in the labour market for university graduates, most notably the Global Financial Crisis of 2007 and the subsequent downturn in gross domestic product growth, and a huge expansion in university places. This article presents estimates of the monetary returns in Australia associated with the completion…

The COVID-19 pandemic has created uncertain economic conditions due to restrictions put in place to control the spread of the virus. These restrictions have significantly impacted the economic activities of businesses and industries, and in turn the demand for labour. As the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia continues, it is…

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of university and vocational education, and other influences on a variety of labour market outcomes for Australian youths aged between 16 and 25. The six labour market outcomes investigated are: occupational status, hourly and weekly earnings, employment, unemployment and full-time work. The…

It is common for organizations such as the International Labour Organization and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development to acknowledge that the links between education and work are far from smooth, creating a "crisis" for youth. This includes increasing rates of unemployment, under-employment and precarious work. In…

The experience of precarious employment is growing across the occupational spectrum and some scholars have predicted that there will be a corresponding rise in anger, anomie, anxiety and alienation amongst those affected. Exploring more intimately how precarity might be differently experienced and confronted, this paper bases itself on a dialogue…

This paper reports that between 2008 and 2009, unemployment rates across OECD countries increased among people at all educational levels, but rose to especially troubling heights among people without an upper secondary education. In 2009, the average employment rate across OECD countries was much higher for individuals with a tertiary (i.e.…

The article compares unemployment, employment, and other labor market indicators in the United States with the available indicators of the eight nations of Canada, Australia, Japan, France, West Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, and Italy. (Author)

Youth unemployment in Australia has risen steadily with recession and the end of the long period of labor scarcity. Recent unemployment rates now rival the high rates among U.S. youth. (Author/SK)

Trends in Australia and the United Kingdom indicate that full employment is unlikely to exist. Current policies tend to reinforce labor market inequalities. Adult educators should attempt to resolve longstanding issues related to the overall values and purposes of adult education and the strategies needed to empower those disadvantaged in or…

This paper explores the impact of policies and institutions on employment and unemployment of OECD countries in the past decades. Reduced-form unemployment equations, consistent with standard wage setting/price-setting models, are estimated using cross-country/time-series data from 21 OECD countries over the period 1982-2003. In the…

In this report data from the 1995 Year 9 Cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) is used along with a variety of empirical approaches to assess the benefits of additional years of schooling for various groups of youth conditional upon their estimated propensity to engage in further schooling. Background material is provided…

An overview of recent literature on changes in the nature and patterns of work and their implications for vocational education and training (VET) is offered. Changes in the nature and patterns of work present significant challenges to the VET sector. More women have entered the work force; unemployment has reemerged as a significant factor;…

An initial analysis of self-reported, formal, postschool job training and the labor market outcomes of that training in Great Britain, Australia, and the United States was made through a study of survey results in each of the countries. The data revealed that there is not one kind of training, but various kinds for different purposes, with…

Presents a broad overview of Australia's diverse immigrant population, with focus placed on the work experiences of females. Analyzes census data to describe the following characteristics more specifically: education, English proficiency, labor force involvement, occupational niche, unemployment, entrepreneurship, and income. Reports that, with a…