Secure Employment Opportunities Research Articles

Exploring the concepts of decent work through the lens of SDG 8: addressing challenges and inadequacies.

Promoting decent work and sustainable economic growth within the framework of Sustainable Development Goal 8 (SDG 8) entails addressing gender inequality, the consequences of market economies, and the role of the informal sector while also considering environmental sustainability. Research on SDG 8 remains limited, often adopting an appraisal perspective, and the concept of decent work within this goal remains relatively unexplored. Additionally, the focus on the challenges and inadequacies of achieving sustainable economic growth through decent work in the context of SDG 8 is insufficient, resulting in significant knowledge gaps. To contribute to filling these gaps, this paper adopts a descriptive and critical review perspective, systematically analyzing 108 journal papers and reports to investigate the concept of decent work within SDG 8. The research addresses the challenges and inadequacies related to decent work embedded in SDG 8. The review reveals that while progress has been made in tackling gender inequality in the labor market, gender bias, income discrepancies, and underrepresentation of women in senior positions persist, hindering inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all - SDG 8. Moreover, SDG 8's focus on inclusive and sustainable development falls short of effectively addressing market economies' structural disparities, insecure working conditions, and exploitative labor practices. Additionally, support for informal sector workers, who lack essential rights such as legal protection and social security, remains insufficient. Ecological destruction is sometimes an unintended consequence of purely market-based labor markets with an emphasis on economic growth, with SDG 8 lacking sufficient integration of environmental sustainability in its framework. The novelty of this study comes from its in-depth, critical, and policy-focused analysis of the ideas around decent employment in the context of SDG 8. The findings underscore the importance of providing fair, safe, and secure employment opportunities to support economic growth and development while upholding workers' rights. In conclusion, we emphasize the crucial role of promoting decent work and sustainable growth in achieving SDG 8's overall objectives, as it directly impacts other SDGs.

How Layers of Context and Material Deprivation Impact Reemployment in Stable or Casual Work

Reemployment for those who are unemployed is both economically and socially important but may be constrained because of the person’s context. The current study investigates key socioeconomic, structural, and individual factors that may impact the likelihood of reemployment for unemployed working age adults over the period of a year. Reemployment is further separated in terms of stability and security by delineating casual versus non-casual reemployment. A multinomial regression analysis of an Australian dataset (n = 375 adults who reported no limitation to their ability to gain employment) found that economic constraints played a substantial role and that the context issues act differently by employment type if reemployed. The results highlight the importance of socio-structural issues, reflecting resource asymmetry. Supportive neighborhoods and material deprivation set the scene, while education enables the pursuit of more stable and secure employment opportunities.

Getting a foot in the door: local labour markets and the school-to-work transition

ABSTRACT Despite persistent sub-national variation in youth unemployment rates, the relationship between local labour market conditions and youth labour market outcomes is not well understood. This article explores the consequences of variation in the level and type of demand for labour for the amount of time it takes young people in the United Kingdom to find employment, following departure from full-time education. Survival analysis of British Household Panel Study (BHPS) data covering the period 1998–2008 shows that variation in the level (but not the type) of demand for labour is associated with considerable heterogeneity in job search time among less qualified young people, but not their better qualified peers. On average, it takes young people with lower secondary qualifications 1 month longer to find employment of any sort and 7 months longer to find secure, full-time employment if they are located in a place of low rather than high labour demand. These findings, which highlight the contextual nature of the risk associated with low educational attainment, point to the need for greater policy focus on bridging spatial mismatch between the location of low qualified young people and the location of secure employment opportunities.

JenniferShermanDividing Paradise: Rural Inequality and the Diminishing American DreamUniversity of California Press, 2021, 284 p., $85.00

JenniferShermanDividing Paradise: Rural Inequality and the Diminishing American DreamUniversity of California Press, 2021, 284 p., $85.00

Perceived Importance of Career Engagement Initiatives in Hospitality Education

ABSTRACT Students are seeking ways to enhance their networking and skills to secure employment opportunities after graduation. To facilitate this endeavor, hospitality programs are taking on different initiatives to engage students with the hospitality industry. This study explores student perceptions of the importance of a variety of career engagement initiatives. An online survey was adopted, and 295 completed surveys were collected. The results of this study show that personal preparation, social interaction, and industry participation were perceived as the most important factors in career engagement.

Emerging Livelihood Vulnerabilities in an Urbanizing and Climate Uncertain Environment for the Case of a Secondary City in Thailand

Increasing flood risks in Thailand are leading to new challenges for flood management and subsequently for livelihoods, which are still significantly agricultural. Policy makers prefer building flood protection infrastructure over utilizing non-structural measures like urban planning regulations to mitigate risks. We argue that unplanned urbanization intensifies flood risks and livelihood vulnerability and may even create new poverty patterns in peri-urban areas. However, urbanization can also strengthen the adaptive capacity of people in flood risk areas by providing more secure employment opportunities. We assess the livelihood vulnerability of Pra Lab, a peri-urban area of Khon Kaen City in Northeast Thailand, using a qualitative and quantitative analysis. The study relies on a vulnerability index developed from a household survey and rainfall statistics, complemented by household in-depth interviews. We further identified factors of unplanned urbanization in Khon Kaen City and Pra Lab through interviews with relevant local government offices. Our findings show that Pra Lab’s household livelihoods are moderately vulnerable to flood due to high financial (i.e., income, debts) and physical vulnerability (i.e., housing, urban systems, infrastructure). Major factors of unplanned urbanization that contribute to flood risks are lack of land use regulations, inefficient monitoring of land and house elevations, reduced pervious surfaces, ineffective water governance and insufficient wastewater treatment.

A man on the make: the business of being Bradman

Bradman loved numbers. He knew the value of big scores and how they could be used to leverage business and cricket opportunities. As this chapter shows, Bradman used his unprecedented ability to compile big scores to secure employment opportunities and promote his own business ventures. A boundless self-promoter in the early 1930s, he was unpopular with many members of the Australian team who tolerated him because of his run-scoring abilities. When his business interests were challenged by Australian cricket administrators, Bradman repeatedly threatened to take his bat to the lucrative northern English leagues. As the Australian Board of Control recognized his great value at the gate, it was loath to lose its major drawcard. As a consequence, in 1934 Bradman leveraged a deal with Board member, Harry Hodgetts and the South Australian Cricket Association. Under the deal, Bradman became a part-time stockbroker's clerk in provincial Adelaide and a full-time professional cricketer. By the mid-1930s, Bradman may have been promoted as the boy from Bowral but in reality he was a man on the make.

Learning The Art of Networking: A Critical Skill for Enhancing Social Capital and Career Success

In this era of boundaryless careers, with individuals making frequent career moves and needing to get up-to-speed quickly, networking is seen as a critical competency. Developing and maintaining relationships with others for the purpose of mutual benefit can help individuals search for and secure employment opportunities, gain access to needed information or resources— especially on short notice—and obtain guidance, sponsorship, and social support. Such networking skills are crucial for enhancing social capital and career success; however, many individuals feel uncomfortable with, or unskilled in, networking. Given the importance of networking for business students, we discuss the benefits and challenges of networking and then share a set of exercises and experiences that have been effective in increasing students' networking abilities.

KUWAIT'S EMPLOYMENT POLICY: ITS FORMULATION, IMPLICATIONS, AND CHALLENGES

ABSTRACT This study investigates the formulation, implications and challenges of Kuwait's employment policy. It postulates that since this policy is designed to secure employment opportunities to all Kuwaitis in the public sector, the government has, for long, acted as employer of first and last resort for Kuwaiti natives with the result that the labor market has been segmented, labor has been misallocated, government wage bill has been escalated and the educational process has been distorted. This policy, however, cannot be sustainable in either the medium or the longer term. In the face of this, effective measures have to be taken to enhance the employment of Kuwaitis in the private sector.

North African labour migration: The search for alternatives

The varying responses of the Maghreb countries to the closure of the West European labour markets to immigrant labour inflows in 1973 are examined. While Algeria has affirmed its commitment to the return and re‐integration of its migrant community, Tunisia and Morocco have pursued policies of migrant re‐direction. Although emigration to Libya has increased substantially, fluctuating political relations made this a highly unstable destination. Government efforts to secure employment opportunities in the Gulf emirates and in Saudi Arabia have been markedly less successful. Long‐term solutions to the employment problems of the North African states demand radical new policies.