Transcript UK Population by Age, 1995 and 2015

Skills in a diverse and ageing
society – future workforce
issues
Professor Sue Yeandle
Director
Centre for Social Inclusion
Sheffield Hallam University
Outline of this presentation
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Projected job growth in England
Making better use of the skills of women
workers
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Understanding the older workforce
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Evidence from our Gender and Employment in
Local Labour Markets project
Issues from my review of Older Workers & Worklife Balance
Some challenging policy questions
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Opportunity for discussion and debate
Projected changes in employment by
sector, England 2003-2012
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Education
Health & Social Work
Professional Services
Retail Distribution
Computing & related
Other Business Services
Miscellaneous Services
+132,000
+231,000
+238,000
+243,000
+309,000
+320,000
+ 207,000
Total above sectors:
Source: LSC Skills in England 2004 (2005)
+1.7 million
Projected changes in employment by
occupation, England 2003-2012
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Corporate Managers
Caring personal service occs.
Business & public service occs.
Teaching & research professionals
Science & technology professionals
Sales occupations
Business & public service professionals
Cultural, media & sports occs.
Customer service occs.
Science associate professionals
Health associate professionals
Total above occupations:
Source: LSC Skills in England 2004 (2005)
+567,000
+551,000
+198,000
+180,000
+175,000
+174,000
+163,000
+157,000
+149,000
+118,000
+104,000
+1.6 million
Characteristics of growth jobs…..
24/7
Part-time
Interpersonal
skills
Qualified
Flexible
Female
Home-based
Peripatetic
Experienced
Making better use of the skills of women workers
What’s the rationale for our focus on
Gender and Employment in Local Labour Markets?
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Participation in the labour market is highly
gendered: - occupations - industrial sectors
- working patterns
Most employment is 'local' to where people
live – especially women
Little previous analysis of genderdisaggregated data at county/district level
Good data on women's / men's is
circumstances crucial for key debates
Evidence from our new research exploring:
Are Women Working Below Potential?
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Women working under their proven or latent potential:
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not using skills, experience, qualifications in current job
actively pursuing clear & contemporary career ambitions
Our study:20 workplaces – survey of 220 PT workers;
qualitative interviews with PTemployees and senior managers
Managers typically claim that 'only one or two' of their parttime women employees are over-qualified - yet 30-40% are
working below potential
New representative national survey shows over 50% of
women aged 25-54 working PT are working below their
proven past potential.
In Britain, 2 million women aged 25-54 are employed parttime in jobs which do not use all their skills and potential
5 categories emerge from our new analysis of women’s
part-time employment (led by Dr Linda Grant)
5 categories of working below potential
among part-time employees
1.
Constrained by a limited labour market
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2.
lack of good quality part-time jobs on open labour market
bored in their jobs, lost confidence, skills now obsolete,
feel trapped in low paid work
They need…support/guidance to realise their
potential, and openly advertised higher level PT jobs
Facing restricted workplace opportunities
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Content with field of employment, no opportunities for
promotion as PT workers in their workplace
felt they were in 'dead end jobs‘
They need… clear career paths, promotion
opportunities & job enrichment for PT workers in
every workplace
3. Withdrawn from previous more demanding jobs
due to the intensity of work
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unhappy with the demanding nature of previous
employment, transition to lower status work a source of
regret, often struggling with living on low pay
They need…genuine work-life balance policy and
practices to overcome the effects of intensity of work
and to retain job skills
4. Apparently content to work below their potential
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no plans to recapture previous place in LM, knew not using
their skills, often bored at work - but PT hours, proximity to
home, absence of pressure, time for home, children, etc.
outweighed tedium/ low pay
5.
Taking steps to realise their potential
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in transition to a new higher paid job, engaged in study or
training, drawing on their own resources to make transition
They need…financial support and enhanced, flexible
opportunities for training and education if they are to
regain their lost status and make their full
contribution
Working Below Potential:
Women and Part-Time Work
by Linda Grant, Sue Yeandle & Lisa Buckner
This report will be published by the EOC, which has provided
additional grant aid, and will be available from CSI, in summer
2006.
The project is one of a series of studies within the Gender and
Employment in Local Labour Markets project directed by
Professor Sue Yeandle at the Centre for Social Inclusion,
Sheffield Hallam University. The project is supported with a
major ESF grant and additional contributions from the EOC, TUC
and 12 English local authorities
Available NOW as free download pdf files:
our Gender Profiles of Local Labour Markets for the
districts of Birmingham, Camden, East Staffordshire,
Leicester, Newcastle, Sandwell, Somerset, Thurrock,
Wakefield and West Sussex,
by Lisa Buckner, Ning Tang and Sue Yeandle:
www.shu.ac.uk/research/csi
Understanding the older workforce:
variety in experiences of work
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Steady/stable – no further career aspirations
Feeling vulnerable through reduced capability
or skills no longer up to date
Reputation, status, achievement still growing
and with more to offer
More committed, fuller contribution than in
earlier life stages
More confident, ready for different challenges
or for self employment
Less assured, and worried about being
displaced by younger colleagues
Orientations to Work in Later Life also vary
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Instrumental: focus on pay and pensions
Social: value on contacts and friendships
Value-driven: strong work ethic
Identity – committed to using skills &
expertise
Job satisfaction – like the nature of work,
the familiarity of work routines
Whatever the orientation…..
 Attitudes will be influenced by youthful
experiences, and
 Work-ending will be coming into view
Questions older workers may be considering
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Why do I want to change my style of working or
the work I do at this point?
Do I want to change my job, my career or my
employer – or all of these?
Do I want to work shorter hours each week, or
would longer periods of leave suit me best?
How much do I want/need to earn from
employment – how will changes affect my
pension and later-life financial circumstances?
Who can I turn to for advice about how to
manage the latter years of my working life?
Older workers: a typology
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Career Changers
Downshifters
Exit Strategists
Rejected Workers
Reluctant Quitters
Identity Maintainers
Workers Till They Drop
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CC
DS
ES
RW
RQ
IM
WD
Policies needed to support
different groups
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CC
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DS
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ES
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RW
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RQ
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IM
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WD
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Life-long learning; training; portable pensions;
vocational guidance; age discrimination protection
Financial information; vocational guidance; portable
pensions
Financial information; secure pension; phased
exit/reduced hours options; pension/part-time option
Vocational guidance; fair recruitment; training;
pension protection
Reduced hours/flexible employment; career breaks
/extended leave; career support; dependable social
care
Self-employment; consultancy options; pension/parttime employment options
Income guarantees; health promotion; pensions/tax
credit information; lifelong learning; not to be
‘written off’ as incapable of progression or training
Some discussion questions
How can we adapt LM opportunities, structures
& job design for an older workforce?
What needs to be done in relation to:
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Job Structure
Organisational Culture
Human Resource Management/Workforce Planning
Training & Re-Skilling
Pensions
Job Offers/Demand for Labour
Can we adapt to use women’s full potential, &
find ways of upgrading PT opportunities?
Can we afford NOT to?
Older Workers and Work-Life Balance
by Sue Yeandle
© Sheffield Hallam University
Published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation 2005
A paper commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Produced with statistical support from Dr Lisa Buckner and additional research by Dr
Pamela Fisher.
Thanks to Donald Hirsch, JRF Adviser, for his comments and suggestions.
Downloadable version of the paper is available from either of:
 www.jrf.org.uk
 www.shu.ac.uk/research/csi
For information contact Sue Yeandle: [email protected]
Tel 0114 225 5786