Does skill obsolescence increase the risk of employment loss?

The importance of informal learning at work

“…This explains why workers who are employed in industries with high rates of technological change are better able to retain their productivity at an older age than workers in sectors that are less dynamic [5]. Workers who experience skill obsolescence appear to learn more on the job and participate more often in training, which lowers the risk of employment loss [10]. These studies suggest that the net effect of gradual technological and organizational change on workers' human capital is often positive, because workers continuously acquire new skills related to the new technologies they have to work with.…”

“…Part of this article builds on [5]. Previous work of the author contains a larger number of background references for the material presented here and has been used intensively in all major parts of this article [1], [3], [9], [10], [12], [13].…”

Technology as a driver of skills obsolescence and skills mismatch: Implications for the labour market, society and the economy

“…While it is true that technological changes can cause both an improvement and a deterioration of skills mismatch, there is significantly a greater number of ways in which such changes lead to negative implications on employment and the workforce (Allen & de Grip 2012). Assuming a disproportionate demand and supply of skill, a cross-matching allocation of jobs, and a static model of obsolescence, the following section will explore the implications of technologyinduced skill mismatch for both employees and employers.…”

“…The type of model is determined by the organisation's operating structure. Allen and de Grip (2012) identify the existence of two models of skill obsolescence: the dynamic model and the static model. In the dynamic skill obsolescence model, skills mismatch pose little risk to the probability of a worker becoming unemployed because the firm is structured in such a way where jobs are complex with constantly changing job contents.…”

“…Skills mismatch is known to generate unwanted effects on the distribution of income (Allen & de Grip 2012;Chauhan & Chauhan 2009;Badillo-Amador & Vila 2013;Cedefop 2010;de Grip 2004;Greenspan 1996). According to research conducted by Badillo-Amador & Vila (2013), employees who hold a higher education level than is required for the job (overeducated workers) tend to earn less than the optimum amount of wage had their skills been utilised effectively.…”