Work-related training, non-standard jobs and socio-economic disadvantage

Description and objectives of the research

Recent decades have seen increased concern in Australia about the rising incidence of casual employment, usually assumed to be associated with less stable working arrangements, lower levels of job-satisfaction, and limited opportunities for skills development and career progression. Although Melbourne Institute research (Buddelmeyer and Wooden, 2011) shows it does not necessarily follow that workers in casual employment are precluded from accessing more traditional and permanent forms of employment, it is less clear what conditions facilitate greater (or lesser) progression; whether non-standard employment poses greater (or lesser) risks for people from different socio-economic groups; and what role is played by work-related education and training.

 

Contact: The Melbourne Institute contacts for this project are Professor Mark Wooden and Associate Professor Duncan McVicar.

Progress: This project commenced in October 2011 with the final report to be submitted to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) by the end of September 2012.