Gender, Nonformal Learning, and Earnings in South Korea

Abstract

Using data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, this study examined gender differences in participation in various forms of nonformal learningon-the-job training, distance learning, workshops and private lessonsand their relationships with earnings in South Korea. The authors found significant gender differences in participation in on-the-job training, distance learning, and workshops favouring male workers, but the reverse gender gap in participation in private lessons favouring female workers. When it came to earnings, the authors found the positive relationships between participation in distance learning and earnings and between workshops and earnings for both males and females, even after controlling for other variables. However, the positive relationship between participation in on-the-job training and earnings was observed only for females. The authors highlight some unique aspects of Korea's organisational culture that may help explain the relationships among gender, on-the-job training and earnings. Broader implications of the findings beyond South Korea are also discussed.

Exploring the OECD survey of adult skills (PIAAC): implications for comparative education research and policy

“…The seven empirical studies included in this special issue interrogate skill inequalities in relation to three domains: acquisition of skills through education (Heisig, Elbers, and Solga 2019), returns to education and training (Danner, Lechner, and Rammstedt 2019;Kwon, Park, and Byun 2019) and labour market mismatch (Capsada-Munsech 2019; Choi, Guio, and Escardibul 2019; Fregin, Levels, and van der Velden forthcoming; Sevilla and Farías 2019). The special issue consists of four cross-national comparative studies (Choi, Guio, and Escardibul 2019;Danner, Lechner, and Rammstedt 2019;Fregin, Levels, and van der Velden forthcoming;Heisig, Elbers, and Solga 2019) and three studies delving deeply into a single country analysis focusing on Spain (Capsada-Munsech 2019), South Korea (Kwon, Park, and Byun 2019), and Chile (Sevilla and Farías 2019). The selected papers show the potential of PIAAC not only for studying international patterns but also for analysing how national political economy contexts shape inequalities in adult skills.…”

“…The two papers analysing the returns to education and training in PIAAC in this special issue (Danner, Lechner, and Rammstedt 2019;Kwon, Park, and Byun 2019) question the underlying assumptions of HCT and provide empirical evidence on the limitations of HCT by explaining the relationship between education and work in contemporary societies. The two papers also broaden the scope of the debate by considering the role of non-cognitive skills (typically skills that require dealing with emotions, communication and the organisation of work), comparing patterns in subjective measures of job satisfaction, besides earnings, and including participation in non-formal learning in their analysis of the unequal labour market returns to education.…”