Enhancing the link between skills development and youth employment policies

Recently the world economy is looking as though it has recovered somewhat from the aftermath of the financial crisis, but the labor market conditions are failing to show significant improvement. In particular, young people newly entering the labor market upon finishing school are experiencing many difficulties finding a suitable job and the situation in Korea is not much different to that of other countries and the problem of mismatch in the labor market remains a key challenge. Hence, Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training (KRIVET) held an international seminar...  [+] Show more

Recently the world economy is looking as though it has recovered somewhat from the aftermath of the financial crisis, but the labor market conditions are failing to show significant improvement. In particular, young people newly entering the labor market upon finishing school are experiencing many difficulties finding a suitable job and the situation in Korea is not much different to that of other countries and the problem of mismatch in the labor market remains a key challenge. Hence, Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training (KRIVET) held an international seminar under the theme of 'Enhancing the link between skills development and youth employment policies' on June 12, 2014 to discuss ways of tackling the issue of youth unemployment. The seminar brought together vocational education and training experts from Germany, Norway, Australia, Switzerland and China, who presented cases and experiences in linking skills development and employment policies in their respective countries. Also, experts from UNESCO-UNEVOC, ILO and Cedefop joined Korean experts in panel discussion to explore ways of resolving youth employment issue from international and comparative perspectives. This compilation of papers and the accompanying presentations were written by experts who participated in the seminar. The English language papers are: Developing relevant skills: culture and structure (the case of Norway) / Joakim Bakke; Vocational education and training and youth employment: some experiences from Germany / Gesa Muenchhausen; Getting qualified for employment: how the dual-track VET system in Switzerland matches skills development and the needs of the labour market / Erik Swars; Linking skills and jobs for youth: Australian case / Phil Loveder; Systematic design to enhance the link between skills development and youth employment in P. R. China / Yufeng Liu. The final chapter, which is in Korean, is: [Links to strengthen skills development and employment of young people / Young Seop Choi].

Edited excerpts from publication.