Review of research since the 1980s shows a consistent trend toward higher skill demands in Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. There is evidence both that higher skills are needed to implement technology and that implementing technology raises skill requirements. Automation is displacing low-skilled jobs and creating…

Comparison of training and qualifications in engineering and construction in Germany and Britain showed that National Vocational Qualifications have not improved training activity in Britain. Britain lags behind Germany in production of intermediate engineering skills and craft qualifications in the building trades. (SK)

A survey of 372 British employers showed they tended to recruit an elite group of graduates from a hierarchy of institutions, making problematic a proposed flat tuition fee. Employer skill needs appeared to be converging, and claims of a skills gap in highly qualified workers were not supported by the data. (Contains 62 references.) (SK)

Examines employability through the lenses of consensus theory and conflict theory. Expands the latter into positional conflict theory, which explains how the market for credentials is rigged and how individuals are ranked in it. Argues that even employable people may fail to find jobs because of positional competition in the knowledge-driven…

Historical analysis of the development of General National Vocational Qualifications (1989-91) identified the political impetus and the attempt to achieve parity of esteem with advanced-level qualifications. Public attention has been focused on failings rather than the system's unquestionable successes with students for whom it was intended. (SK)

This paper uses recent data from the UK Labour Force Survey to estimate the wage gains that individuals make on average if they complete an apprenticeship programme. The results suggest gains of around 5-7% for men, but no benefit for women. Further analysis extends the results by considering the returns by age group, by qualification obtained, by…

Contains eight articles describing the implementation and outcomes of National Qualifications Frameworks (NQF) in Scotland, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and France. Topics include NQF as a global phenomenon, neoliberal influences, and epistemological issues. (SK)

Interviews with 29 policymakers involved in the development of the National Vocational Qualifications/Scottish Vocational Qualifications identified four factors influencing the reform initiative: pressure for vocational relevance, postindustrial nature of economic change and work, need to make training standards based rather than time served, and…

This paper argues that the current skill strategies of New Labour (in England) and the Labour-led Coalition (in New Zealand) are part of a broader project to construct contrasting markets in education and training. On one hand, the skill strategies are helping to construct open education and training markets through creating institutional-based…