Issues arising from an ageing society, a low fertility rate and growing need for a skilled work force, have seen increased government commitment to improving the participation rate of mature-aged workers. Education and training are seen as a principal strategy to increase the employability of these workers, yet participation in training is low and declines with age. Based on a study of 8 mature-aged participants enrolled in an accredited training program, this paper identifies their learning needs and motivations. The findings identify a range of institutional and personal factors that shaped their participation. Given the diversity of personal factors identified within this small sample, it is unlikely that creating one policy or training approach would address the education and training needs of this cohort. Hence, there is a need to understand more fully how the diverse needs of mature-aged workers can be accommodated within the vocational education and training system.
This article uses the concept of bounded agency to interpret the findings of a study that explored the training and job-seeking activities of a group of older adults. A qualitative, phenomenological approach was used to obtain personal and nuanced accounts of their experiences. A series of semi-structured interviews was conducted with eight adults aged 55 and older, who were low-skilled and unemployed. The findings identified that a range of interrelated barriers constrained their agency in those activities in two key areas. First, there was a disparity between their learning needs and preferences, and the delivery modes in their training programmes. Second, legacies from their personal histories contributed significantly to constraints in their current activities. The bounded agency concept explicated this range of barriers, as it incorporated institutional, societal and personal factors within the agency of individuals. A model of bounded agency was developed, that showed legacies from an individual's personal history can lie at the base of their disadvantaged state, and that provisions in their training programmes can address those legacies. The article concludes by suggesting that this model could form the basis of further research with other jobseekers from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The institutionalised categorisation of adults who are over 55 years of age, unemployed and low-skilled as 'older' and 'disadvantaged' may adversely affect their employment prospects and their self-esteem. This paper reports on the findings of a study that explored the experiences of a small group of such adults; in particular, the barriers to their participation in training and job-seeking activities. The research comprised a qualitative, phenomenological approach, and used a series of semi-structured interviews to gain an insight into their reactions to such categorisation. The findings could not identify a direct link between institutionalised categorisation and self-categorisation, but indicated that those labels did not enhance their self-esteem nor increase their enthusiasm for participating in activities to increase their employability. These findings indicate for policy makers a disjunction between the possibly detrimental consequences of the institutionalised categorisation of this cohort and the need to increase their participation in the labour market.
In Australia and other OECD countries, increasing the labour force participation rate of older adults (45-64 years) is seen as a primary strategy to address the current demographic challenges brought about by an ageing population and the retirement of skilled workers. Not all older adults have current workplace skills, yet barriers which include institutional, societal and personal factors, may constrain their participation in training and educational activities to increase their employability. The qualitative, phenomenological study reported here explored, through a series of semi-structured interviews, the experiences of a small group of disadvantaged older jobseekers, as they participated in training and job-seeking activities. Major findings included the disparity between the participants' preferred ways of learning and the delivery modes in their training programs, and that their training activities did not necessarily translate into employment. The findings bring into question the value of training and the effectiveness of current provisions.
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