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This article reports on research carried out under the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC's) Learning Society Programme. The program comprised 14 projects involving research into the learning society and the ways in which it can contribute to the development of knowledge and skills for employment and in other areas of adult life. The article is one of a series of comparative studies which explore notions of lifelong learning, learning organisation and learning society in Europe and, in some cases, reflect on the use of comparative research in the social sciences. It reports on a study involving an intra-European comparison of multiskilling in the three sectors of engineering, construction and residential care, in South Wales and two regions of Germany. A 'matched pair' approach involving the matching of small- and medium-sized organisations of similar size and product/service was adopted and the authors highlight some of the main difficulties in devising, conducting and analysing the results of international research in organisations.

This publication is the first of two volumes containing the findings of extensive empirical research into lifelong learning, undertaken by the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC's) Learning Society Programme in the United Kingdom (UK). The research examined the ways in which lifelong learning can contribute to the development of knowledge and skills for employment and in other areas of adult life. The main themes explored in this first volume are the post-16 education market, key skills in higher education, adult guidance services, and the development of knowledge at work. Each chapter provides an overview of a project, its objectives, methods, main findings and policy implications. The chapters are: Introduction: a critical analysis of the concept of a learning society / Frank Coffield; 'Worlds apart' - education markets in the post-16 sector of one urban locale 1995-98 / Stephen J. Ball, Meg Maguire and Sheila Macrae; Unifying academic and vocational learning in England, Wales and Scotland / Ken Spours, Michael Young, Cathy Howieson and David Raffe (see TD/TNC 65.130); Skill development in higher education and employment / Elisabeth Dunne, Neville Bennett and Clive Carre (see TD/TNC 66.150); The variable contribution of guidance services in different types of learning societies / Will Bartlett and Teresa Rees; Changing patterns of training provision in the National Health Service: an overview / Jenny Hewison, Therese Dowswell and Bobbie Millar; Working and learning in Britain and Germany: findings of a regional study / Phil Cooke, Antje Cockrill, Peter Scott, John Fitz and Brian Davies; Development of knowledge and skills at work / Michael Eraut, Jane Alderton, Gerald Cole and Peter Senker.

This publication is part of the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC's) Learning Society Programme which undertook research into the learning society and the ways in which it can contribute to the development of knowledge and skills for employment and in other areas of adult life. The collection of articles examine the key processes of learning, including barriers to learning, in organisational structures and in specific social practices. The articles are: Introduction: new forms of learning in the workplace / Frank Coffield; Artisans in the making?: comparing construction training in Wales and Germany / Peter Scott and Antje Cockrill; Jobrotation: combining skills formation and active labour market policy / Reiner Siebert; Continuing vocational training: key issues / Isabelle Darmon, Kari Hadjivassiliou, Elisabeth Sommerlad, Elliot Stern, Jill Turbin with Dominique Danau; Learning from other people at work / Michael Eraut, Jane Alderton, Gerald Cole and Peter Senker; The learning society: the highest stage of human capitalism? / Stephen Baron, Kirsten Stalker, Heather Wilkinson and Sheila Riddell; Skill formation: redirecting the research agenda / David Ashton.

This article reports on research carried out under the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC's) Learning Society Programme. The program comprised 14 projects involving research into the learning society and the ways in which it can contribute to the development of knowledge and skills for employment and in other areas of adult life. Case studies are presented to illustrate how organisational change has reduced the role of formal one-off training courses and refocused attention on skill formation as a continuous process. The learning process is now focused on the workplace rather than the training department within organisations. The author argues that the process of learning at work has become more central to the achievement of business objectives as a result of organisational changes. Managers, supervisors and employees are now becoming actively involved in the process with the trainer taking on more of a consultative role in facilitating workplace learning. However, learning at work is still seen by many of those directly involved as something that naturally occurs without the need for much support. The major implication of this for the research agenda is the need to develop more adequate theories of learning in the workplace.

This article reports on research carried out under the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC's) Learning Society Programme. The program comprised 14 projects involving research into the learning society and the ways in which it can contribute to the development of knowledge and skills for employment and in other areas of adult life. The article is one of a series of comparative studies which explore notions of lifelong learning, learning organisation and learning society in Europe and, in some cases, reflect on the use of comparative research in the social sciences. It outlines the introductory steps towards a possible framework for transnational comparisons of continuous vocational training (CVT), also referred to as 'company training'. The authors compare innovations in CVT within companies in the United Kingdom (UK), France and Spain. In the last two decades, CVT has become increasingly associated with organisational change and restructuring for competitiveness and flexibility, but also serves as a buffer against change through the qualification of employees and the anticipation of employment trends and skill requirements. In addition, all three countries have experienced deregulation to varying degrees and the authors demonstrate how each country has developed a form of 'social compromise' between the quest for economic competitiveness and the protection of employees from the effects of deregulation. The article indicates that cross-national comparison of innovation in company training requires the comparison of emerging 'compromises' within increasingly flexible and deregulated environments.