Industrial Workforce Research Articles

SPROUTING SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRIAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL WORKFORCE THROUGH TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN SOUTH-SOUTH, NIGERIA

The call for continuous creation of industrial and technological workforce cannot be overlooked, in view of the fact that it will boost the sustainable industrial and technological development of any nation. A vital programme that can bring into being requisite workforce for sustainable industrial and technological development is Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET). To this end, this study investigated the strategies for sprouting sustainable industrial and technological workforce through TVET in Nigeria using the descriptive survey research design. The study was guided with two research questions and two hypotheses. The sample was made up of 300 respondents comprising of 154 TVET Lecturers from Universities and 146 TVET industry-based workers in South-South Geopolitical Zone of Nigeria, who were selected using simple random and convenience sampling techniques respectively. The instrument used for data collection was a 69-item questionnaire which was validated by three experts. The reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach Alpha and a reliability coefficient of .86 was obtained. Mean and standard deviations statistics were used to answer the research questions, whereas t-test statistic was used to test the null hypotheses at .05 level of significance. The findings of this study revealed that TVET programmes had some policy-related challenges; and TVET institutions-workplace collaboration is a possible strategy for sprouting sustainable industrial and technological workforce in Nigeria. Thus, among others, it was recommended that firm TVET policy document be set-up by government and all stakeholders to appropriately synchronize TVET programmes towards sprouting sustainable industrial and technological workforce in Nigeria.

ANALISIS EKONOMI ISLAM TERHADAP PEMENUHAN UPAH LAYAK TENAGA KERJA INDUSTRI BATIK (Studi Kasus : Sentra Batik Kecamatan Plered Kabupaten Cirebon)

Batik industry was an excellent product of Plered that have been set by the Government, especially Cirebon. Cirebon Regency was the largest industrial centers batik in West Java, because many industry batik in Plered and many people worked as batik artisans in Plered. The existence of an industry is expected to have many benefits not only for the manufacturers but also for its workforce. The purpose of this research was (1) Identifying the wages received by the batik industry workforce housing units has met the needs of the eligible. (2) Analyze the Economic Outlook of the Islamic labor waging system unit home batik Subdistrict Plered (3) Composing model waging a be eligible on batik home Sub unit Plered. This research used purposive sampling with population of batik industry is a labor of a home unit. Analytical tool used was Multiple Linear Regression. Results the regression show that factors that influence significantly to levels of wage labor unit home batik industry is a long work day, work experience and operational cost, whereas other variables was not significant. Therefore, to increase the wages in order to acquire the necessary life worthy remuneration models that were eligible on the batik industry, are with a view to the verses that have been described in the Qur'an. Wage system that occurred in the housing unit labor could be said to be in accordance with the provisions of the contract of Ijarah, although the amount is not yet worthy but it is in conformity with the customs and traditions in the society Plered and workers batik housing unit no matter anything, as well as the delay in wages Keywords: Labor Housing Units, Minimum Wage, Multiple Linear Regression, Needs Decent Living

Dietary patterns in relation to major cardiovascular diseases risk factors

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of empirically derived dietary patterns with hypertension and hyperlipidemia among a large sample of Iranian industrial employees.Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study was done under the framework of Epidemiological Survey of Chronic Diseases on Manufacturing Employees. Major dietary patterns were derived based on a validated short form of food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) using exploratory factor analysis. Self-administered validated questionnaires were used to collect data on socio-demographic and job-related variables of participants. Multivariable logistic regression was applied for association analyses.FindingsHigher levels of Western dietary pattern increased significantly the risk of hypertension (odds ratio [OR] = 1.85, 95% CI [1.36-2.53], P trend <0.001) and hyperlipidemia (OR = 1.45, 95% CI [1.16-1.81], p = 0.001) even after controlling for confounding variables. The traditional dietary pattern was marginally associated with a significant increase in risk of hyperlipidemia ( = 1.14, 95% CI [0.92-1.41], p = 0.084) in the fully adjusted model. However, higher levels of healthy dietary pattern were significantly associated with a decreased risk of hyperlipidemia in the final model (OR 0.80, 95% CI [0.64-0.90], p = 0.025).Originality/valueTo the authors’ knowledge, an association analysis between dietary patterns and major cardiovascular disease risk in workforce population over the world is scarce and has not yet been conducted among Iranian industrial employees. This study’s findings are especially relevant for the industrial workforce population because they are at high risk of other job-related risks that increase the CVD risk.

THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF CONTEXT AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN PREDICTING PROACTIVE SERVICE PERFORMANCE

The current study addresses the gap in how context and individual differences help in developing a proactive workforce in the hospitality industry. Based on the model of proactive motivation and self-determination theory, this study investigates the simultaneous impact of interpersonal leadership and learning goal orientation through the mediating role of employee engagement. The study sample (N =438) is collected from front line hospitality employees in Malaysia. Results of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) show that both context (i.e., interpersonal leadership) and individual differences (i.e., Learning Goal Orientation) are significant predictors of employee engagement and, in turn, of proactive service performance. Moreover, engagement is found as a significant mediator between both the predictors and the criterion. Interestingly, however, in comparison with interpersonal leadership, learning goal orientation is noticed as a substantial predictor of employee engagement and proactive service performance. Implications of the findings for research and practice are discussed accordingly.

Is the Chinese Children’s Mainstream Book Market Inclusive Enough? A Data Analysis of Children’s Bestsellers on Dangdang.com

As the book is the main source to help children get the idea of the outside world, there has been wide concerns about build-up inclusion diversity in publishing area around the world in recent years, both in publishing industry workforce and book contents. In this research, we collected and analyzed copyright information and introductions of 7170 children’s bestsellers from 2011–2018 on the largest online bookstore in China—dangdang.com, looks particularly at the differences of gender, nationality of authors, book categories and book contents. We try to depict a diversity landscape of Chinese children’s book market, the findings reveal a general gender inequality, and a lack of culture diversity in children’s mainstream books in China.

The 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act as Antecedent to Contemporary Latina/o/x Migration

This essay focuses on a vital question: what can immigrant advocates learn from the history of immigration law and policy reform? The topic is vast, but in this essay, I offer a brief look at one of the most critical pieces of contemporary legislation — the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA). I discuss the effects of IRCA on Latina/o/x migration through a historical and critical legal studies lens. First, I discuss the history of immigration law and policy and the important and undeniable intersections between immigration law and formal and informal racial and ethnic discrimination. I provide a brief review of the history prior to the passage of IRCA to understand the political context of its passage and of its effects. The essay then explores the passage of IRCA and its immediate effects on the legalization of millions of previously undocumented immigrants, while also noting the gendered implications of the legalization program. In fact, IRCA helped set the stage for continued gendered discrimination against women migrants by favoring the traditional male workforce in the agricultural industries. Moreover, despite its antithetical purpose, the legalization program resulted in increased rates of undocumented migration from Central America. Next, the essay contextualizes this historical perspective to more contemporary times by noting how IRCA-era migration trends are reflected in more recent numbers of Central American migration and in current political movements to legalize other sectors of undocumented immigrants, like in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and the now-failed Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) program. More recently, these trends have influenced increased numbers of undocumented families and children to risk migration to the United States. The essay concludes by commenting on the continuation of these entrenched historical trends.

Veteran workforce development: how veterans can make a positive impact on workforce development in the construction industry

Hiring veterans is a valuable way through which the construction industry may overcome the workforce development challenges it faces. In spite of the several initiatives introduced by construction firms alongside the government and other stakeholders to take advantage of veteran talent, little research has been conducted to understand the impact of hiring veterans as workforce in the construction industry. Based on in-depth interviews with five veterans and one individual, all from the construction industry, this study sought to understand the positive impact hiring veterans can have on workforce development in the construction industry as well as the challenges associated with hiring veterans. According to the findings of the study, veterans possess unique skills and abilities that make them ideal for construction jobs: a strong work ethic, teamwork and leadership skills, organisation and the ability to develop action plans, resilience and problem solving skills, and cross-cultural competence.

Age management in the context of Industry 4.0 and beyond

Abstract Keeping workers active and productive for a longer time is one of the key societal challenges of developed economies. Older workers have accumulated experiences and knowledge during their working lifetime, but due to declining functional capacities, many of them will not be able to work until the increased retirement age. Contemporary technological solutions supporting human-machine interactions such as smart working environment, production cells, exoskeletons, and others, in the context of Industry 4.0 technologies enable workers to stay productive longer. In the present study, we use a multiple decrement model. In the numerical example, we apply the model to the European industrial workforce. We modeled transitions among different productivity states of industrial workers, ranging from a potential employee to workforce exit, through retirement or death. The presented study shows the importance of appropriate age management practice applications that have the potential to substantially prolong the work-life of industrial workers in the European Union. The demographic model presented, allows measuring the influence that technological solutions in the context of Industry 4.0 have on the workers’ entrance and exits. The model shows how leveraging the accumulated workers’ knowledge and experience of older workers and automation of physically demanding tasks can not only improve the productivity of industrial systems but also decrease the costs of ill-health related expenditures.

Concept for distributed robotics learning environment - Increasing the access to the robotics via modularisation of systems and mobility

The ongoing digital transition affects manufacturing industry at all levels, from workers at a shop floor to machine systems, and from business models to future markets. Emerging technologies such as robotics, Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial intelligence (AI), and cyber-physical production systems (CPPS) capable of facilitating real-time processes, visibility and transparency of factory operations will speed up the change of manufacturing paradigms. The mass customization and personification is expected to increase further.The capability to address the requirements and needs of each individual customer will be a key differentiation and competitive factor. At the same time the workforce in Europe is diminishing, causing a miss-match between skills and needs from the industry. In manufacturing industry any skills are developed by experience, reflecting time on the labour market and age and skills taught in qualifications change. Qualifications which are prone to technological change are likely to reflect quite different embodied skills according to age cohort. In order to answer these challenges we have established a robotics fablab concept to support both formal and non-formal education offered to the younger students and industrial workforce alike. The concept utilises digital learning contents, a fablab operating philosophy and mobile factory concept, meaning that parts (e.g. robot cells) of the laboratory can be shipped to another location for a while to be used by learners. This paper will described the concept and preliminary findings from the applicability of the concept.

국가주도 디자인 인력양성 정책에 대한 검증과 새로운 제안

국가주도 디자인 인력양성 정책에 대한 검증과 새로운 제안

Pengaruh industri kecil terhadap pertumbuhan ekonomi di Provinsi Jambi

This study aims to determine the effect of the number of business units, investment, and labor on economic growth in Jambi Province in 2001-2017. This type of research is descriptive quantitative. The use of secondary data from the publication of the Central Statistics Agency of Jambi Province in the form of time series data, namely Economic Growth, number of small industrial business units, small industrial investment, small industrial workforce. The results showed that, from the results of the t-test, it can be concluded that for each small industrial business unit variable, the number of small industrial business units and small industrial workers has a significant effect on economic growth. The results of the coefficient of determination test (R²) show that the ability of the independent variables (small industrial business units, small industrial investment and small industrial workers) in explaining the dependent variable (economic growth) is 98.69 percent. In comparison, the variable others explain the remaining 1.31 percent outside the model. Keywords: Economic growth, Business units, Labor, Investment

Development of a professional competency framework for UK food science graduates

AbstractFood science‐based graduates are a significant proportion of the United Kingdom (UK) food and drink industry's workforce. Aside from technical standards, there is no cohesive competency framework to support key stakeholders; employers, students, and degree providers. Clarity of desirable competencies for the range of graduate opportunities available would enable students to undertake effective career planning and personal development, and educators to refine programs to satisfy market needs. Using a previously developed language tool, a Likert style, industry‐wide online survey in UK and Republic of Ireland (ROI) was conducted involving 218 participants from a broad range of food science‐related employment areas, evaluated by a combination of descriptive and multivariate data analysis. The survey outcomes indicate types of desirable competencies in a food science graduate. The tailored competency framework, Competencies for Food Graduate Careers (CFGC), is a set of 48 elements across eight themes, outlining which are desirable for each of 14 typical initial graduate roles. To enhance the quality of “oven‐ready” graduates entering the food industry, it is recommended CFGC be used for careers education and competency development in higher education. The framework is aimed to have further applications for job specification development and also to improve awareness of careers in the food industry.

Work Ability Index (WAI): A Comparison between High School and Vocational School Graduates in the Modern Machinery Industry

This study aims to understand the presence or absence of work skills between high school and vocational school in the modern machinery industry and to know the workforce in the modern machinery industry can also help high school workers. This research method is a quantitative study with interviews with workers in companies in the Banten region, after data collection has been processed using different tests with the SPSS program. The analysis test uses the normality test and the different test uses the Mann Whitney U Test. The results showed the technical competence difference between High School and Vocational School, while Conceptual Ability and Social Ability had no difference between the High School and Vocational School workforce in the modern machinery industry. The workforce collected by high schools wins workers in the manufacturing and non-manufacturing industries. The next discussion is discussed in this article.

Chinese Eastern Industrial Zone in Ethiopia: unpacking the enclave

This paper examines China’s engagement with Africa through economic zones (EZs). It moves beyond the conceptualisation of EZs as undifferentiated enclaves of foreign investment to a dynamic perspective on the locally negotiated process of zone development. Such a perspective entails critical unpacking of the specific zone regime to understand the diverse and evolving relationships among different state and non-state actors. Drawing upon empirical research on the Eastern Industrial Zone (EIZ) in Ethiopia, we explore the complex process of learning and adaptation by government, developers, investors, and workers throughout the development of a zone regime, with specific attention to capital–labour and expatriate–local relations. We find that despite the EIZ being a state-level cooperation project, private Chinese developers work diligently with the Ethiopian government to improve the institutional support for EZs. Chinese investors also collectively generate a management regime to enhance their overseas operational capacity and experiment with various tactics to transform local recruits into an industrial workforce. Local workers, with limited protection by official labour unions, turn to individual- and group-based agency to improve their working conditions. Despite the momentum created by multiple stakeholders, there are concerns regarding the long-term contributions of EZs to engender sustained industrial transformation and skills development.

The training of production personnel at industrial enterprises of Ulyanovsk region during the Great Patriotic War

On the basis of previously unstudied archival documents this article reveals the multifaceted and multidimensional activities which the country’s top leadership as well as the leaders of the Middle Volga (Samara) region and Ulyanovsk district (from 1943 renamed Ulyanovsk region) unfolded for mobilizing work force for the military industry of Ulyanovsk region. In the shortest possible time, just within one year, under conditions of shortage in housing, production areas, raw materials, and skilled personnel, they managed not only to redirect practically all industrial enterprises in the city of Ulyanovsk and the Ulyanovsk district towards the war eff ort, but also to integrate several dozens of evacuated enterprises, to provide them with production areas, and to accommodate thousands of employees as well as their family members. By the summer of 1942, all these enterprises had started to work at full capacity; they considerably increased deliveries of all things needed at the front, thus making a considerable contribution to ensuring a radical change in the course of the war in 1943. The authors conclude that this success resulted from the eff ective work of central and local authorities, as well as of the directorates of the defense enterprises, in the fi eld of training of highly skilled specialists. New vocational schools were set up, in addition to technical schools and production classes at general schools. Moreover, successful measures were taken to motivate the youth for highly productive work. The authors emphasize that the heads of the enterprises organized eff ective training directly at the workplaces. The work with production staff was accompanied by well-organized ideological and educational work at the enterprises which in due time allowed to prevent provocations aimed at disrupting the military production in this critical period of the war. In particular, the article points to the successful management of the textile industry and cloth factories for increasing labor productivity and establishing labor discipline in teams.

Real Humans?: &lt;i&gt;Affective imaginaries of the human and its Others in the Swedish TV series Äkta människor&lt;/i&gt;

According to the Swedish science fiction TV series Akta manniskor (Real Humans, SVT and Matador film 2012-2014), humanoid robots called “hubots” are replacing the human workforce in care work and assembly line industries. Against the backdrop of current debates about immigration and citizenship in the Nordic countries, this article does a close, contextual reading of the series, exploring how the hubots influence work and family life. We are particularly interested in how hubots tie in with the cultural circulation of affect in relation to Otherness and how responses towards the “not-quite” human or dehumanized Other are negotiated in present-day Nordic cultural imaginaries. What kinds of affects are at stake in how Akta manniskor takes up and interacts with debates about immigrant workers and the “not-quite” human? To answer these questions, the article develops the notion of “affective imaginaries” as an analytical tool for understanding the exchange between popular culture and political debate.

Technological Workforce and Its Impact on Algorithmic Justice in Politics

The use of algorithms can be highly beneficial and efficient to make statistical decisions in settings where data are voluminous. However, there are on-going concerns about the potential long-term negative consequences of the use of algorithms due to inherent biases against certain subgroups of the population which tend to be under-represented in the society. To address this issue, we propose that it is critical to develop ways to bring the technological capabilities that underlie these advances to the broadest group of people by focusing on the nature of workforce in the tech industry. Particularly, we propose that having a diverse workforce in the tech industry and inter-disciplinary education, including principles of ethical coding, can be a starting point to resolve this issue. Politicians, regulators, and educational institutions must be prepared to address these issues in order to set a system that works equally for all people in a democratic society.

Analisis Kebutuhan Kompetensi Pekerja Industri Kulit/Alas Kaki Menyongsong Era Industri 4.0

Industry 4.0 competency model has three areas of competence as salience, there is Information Systems, Computer Science, and Engineering. It hence requires adaptability to SKKNI Golongan Pokok Industri Kulit, Barang dari Kulit and Alas Kaki to accommodate these three areas as part of the competence that must be owned by industrial workers. The analysis of competency needs of leather industry and footwear industry aims to produce SKKNI accordance recommendation to the concept of industry standard 4.0. The method used is point-to-point correlation between predictors and criteria initiated by (Bartram, 2005) and further developed by (Prifti, Knigge, Kienegger, &amp; Krcmar, 2017). In the end SKKNI which is embraced through the application of this recommendation will be use as reference for the formal and non-formal curriculum education improvement to prepare industry workforce towards industry 4.0 era.

Migration Pattern of Industrial Workers in Bekasi Regency

Bekasi Regency, which is located in the periphery cities of Jakarta and Bekasi, has experienced significant regional development. As an industrial area, Bekasi Regency is very attractive to prospective workers. The population problem that needs attention is the employment issue. As the population increases, the number of workers also increases. The purpose of this study is to geographically identify the area of origin of industrial labor in the Bekasi District which is the most dominant, to find out the characteristics of the industrial sector workforce based on their level of education and competence. This research used a quantitative descriptive method with a survey approach, and also conducted interviews with stakeholders, namely the local government of Bekasi Regency

The workforce ageing challenge and employer response: a study of the Australian transport and logistics industry

ABSTRACTWorkforce ageing is a challenging phenomenon for many countries. Its impact, however, varies widely across economies, sectors, industries and occupations. This paper examines the ways in which employer attitudes and practices help sustain the workforce ageing problem at sector and industry levels. The underpinning study was developed in the context of the Australian Transport and Logistic (T&L) sector and involved Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) household census data analysis and key employer interviews. The analysis concludes that, while the T&L sector experienced higher levels of workforce ageing, relative to the broader Australian economy, employers exhibited surprising complacence and a dismissive attitude towards the potential implications. Although this observation was general, there were certain clear patterns influenced by firm size, type of industry and nature of work. For example, whereas larger firms tend to be more proactive in their workforce planning generally and workforce replenishment more specifically, smaller ones, which comprised the majority tended to externalise the problem or take a ‘wait and see’ approach. As one of very few studies that closely and specifically examines the workforce ageing phenomenon from the perspective of employer behaviour, it makes significant contribution to our understanding of how employer behaviour influences industry workforce ageing.