Since the 2008 financial crisis created ructions in the labor market, there has been prolonged focus on the nature of work. As the labor market has proved resilient in terms of people generally having work, the concern shifted to the kind of work people had, with worries that much of the new work was precarious in nature.
A recent report from the innovation group Nesta suggests that there are six million people in the UK who are in such a precarious position, and they caution that without assistance, these people will be stuck in a cycle of either low-pay and insecure employment or forced out of the workforce entirely.
“The problem is that many people who are in low-paid work – or who aren’t working at all – aren’t able to access the information they need to plan for the future or the relevant training they need to gain new skills,” the authors say. “They also tend to work in places and industries that are likely to lose out over the next decade, making it harder than ever for them to access good jobs.”
Precarious work
The use of fundamentally insecure modes of employment is not a new thing, especially for lower-skilled work. Indeed, as I’ve argued in a previous article, it has a heritage harking back some 70 years to the formation of temping giant Manpower. There are concerns that what has often been a relatively minor part of the labor market is becoming increasingly mainstream, especially among younger, less-skilled individuals.
New research tries to understand this situation in more detail, and to especially understand how young people feel about their career prospects in such an environment. The researchers conducted a number of focus groups around the United Kingdom, where 18-25 year olds were quizzed on their attitude towards work, the economy and on industrial relations. The group covered a cross section of skill levels and consisted equally of male and female participants.
They hoped to understand whether young people had normalized precarious work conditions, and if so, why this had happened. Do do they seek to operate within such a system rather than actively oppose it?
The results suggest that most young people fully recognize that their socio-economic circumstances are not right, and in fact that what is normal for them is abnormal. This was reflected in anger at the way the economy had evolved since the 2008 financial crisis, and the way in which phenomena such as Brexit have unfolded from within this malaise.
A helpless situation
Despite this, there was also an apparent sense of helplessness, with many regarding insecure work as simply part and parcel of the new economic order, and something they would have to deal with for the remainder of their working life. They believe that this acceptance allows them to focus less on fighting the system than on working to optimize their chances within it.
Trade unions, and measures such as those used by previous generations to act on behalf of labor, are also viewed with suspicion, with many revealing they thought such institutions are not especially helpful to people operating in the modern labor market. It’s an opinion I shared in a recent article following the release of a report from the Trade Unions Congress on the future of work. The paper advocates for dramatic interventions, such as banning gig economy work and legislating for a four-hour work week, while simultaneously failing to mention any attempts to better equip people for the changing nature of work.
This lack of support in helping young people craft a better future for themselves was also shared by the Nesta report on the topic. They argue that there is a fundamental mismatch at the moment between the skills people have, and the skills needed in the economy, and society needs to begin by getting better data on this situation, before then providing better means by which all parts of society can access the training and development they need.
Treading water
Many of the innovations we’ve seen already have done a fine job of reaching those already engaged with education, but they do a poor job of reaching those who have historically been dis-engaged. This was re-iterated by a recent report on adult education from UNESCO, which highlighted the large swathes of the population who are not engaged in learning.
“Troublingly, in many countries, disadvantaged groups – adults with disabilities, older adults, refugees and migrants, and minority groups – participate less in adult learning and education,” the authors say. “In some countries, provision for these groups is regressing.”
The report reveals a number of key findings, not least of which is that participation in lifelong learning is weak throughout the world. Indeed, 25% of the 96 countries reported participation rates of between 5 and 10%, with a further 29% reporting participation rates lower than that. While many revealed that participation rates are growing, these rates were lowest among disadvantaged groups, including those on low-incomes, people with disabilities or simply those living in rural areas.
The 2008 crisis has left an indelible mark on a generations expectation of the labor market, and their place within it. As well as providing better opportunities for young people to advance their careers, we also need to do so from a foundation of understanding of their personal identity and their views on the world they face today.
It’s common for each generation to believe their circumstances are unique to them, but for the current generation, that may be true, and the implications of this are significant for both industrial relations and political participation.
