European education and training policy for under-educated unemployed people

Abstract

This article draws exclusively on European Commission and Member State education and training policy, framed by social and economic policy, to consider their implication for under-educated, long-term unemployed people. The article argues that the late 20th century economic and demographic changes frame both compulsory and post-compulsory education and training policies. The policies recognise these global factors, and repeatedly use the concept of social exclusion to refer to the resulting group based nequalities. However, reflecting the underlying tension between formal and material equality, their solutions remain targeted on the individual. In questioning the policy implications for social justice, the tension between the new group based concept of social exclusion and the earlier 'individualised' concept of equal opportunities is central to this article.