Search Results

The OECD annual report on jobs and employment in OECD countries reviews recent trends, policy developments, and prospects. The 2021 edition of the OECD Employment Outlook [available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 145.163] focusses on the labour market implications of the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 crisis. Country notes are available for Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

In some countries, employers used job retention programmes to cut hours while allowing workers to keep their pay and jobs; there, it is likely that the full impact of the pandemic is yet to be felt. In others, there have been unprecedented increases in unemployment, but many workers will return to their jobs (or to new ones) as economies re-open and activity picks up.

The initial impact of the COVID-19 crisis was relatively modest in Korea due to the fast and widespread campaign of test, tracking and tracing that contributed to contain the spread of the virus. The unemployment rate in Korea started to rise from 3.4 per cent in February 2020 and reached 5.4 per cent in January 2021 due to enhanced distancing measures at the end of 2020. After that, it gradually declined to 3.8 per cent by May 2021. In Korea, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a greater impact on vulnerable groups, such as non-regular workers and young people. In 2020, the number of temporary and daily workers decreased by 6.5 per cent and 7.1 per cent respectively, while the number of regular workers increased by 2.1 per cent. The employment rate for young people (aged 15-29) also fell in 2020 by 1.3 percentage points compared to the previous year, showing the largest decline among all age groups.

Edited excerpts from publisher's website and publication. Show less

The New Growth Strategy aims to create demand and jobs through regulatory reform and fiscal measures. The Strategy focuses on key challenges, notably climate change and population ageing, which can be turned into sources of growth. Given Japan’s precarious fiscal position, it is essential to co-ordinate spending related to the Strategy with the medium-term fiscal plan, in part by increasing the emphasis on regulatory reform. Such measures should cover the entire economy, rather than being limited to the seven areas identified in the Strategy. Among those areas, effectively promoting green innovation will require market-based instruments to place a price on carbon, preferably through a mandatory and comprehensive emissions trading system, to promote private investment, accompanied by a range of other policies. Achieving deeper economic integration with Asia depends on reducing support for agriculture to facilitate more bilateral and regional trade agreements, while bringing down barriers to foreign direct investment and foreign workers. Policies to expand venture capital would help launch innovative firms.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

The main purpose of the OECD's 'Thematic review of tertiary education' is to provide policy makers with information and analysis to assist them in formulating and implementing policies to achieve national social and economic objectives through tertiary education. Its key objectives are to: synthesise research-based evidence on the impact of tertiary education policies and disseminate this knowledge among participating countries; identify innovative and successful policy initiatives and practices; facilitate exchanges of lessons and experiences among countries; and identify future policy options. The review, which involved 24 countries (Australia, Belgium - Flemish Community, Chile, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, Korea, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russian Federation, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom), 'examines how the organisation, management and delivery of tertiary education can help countries achieve their economic and social objectives'. As part of the review, each of the participating countries was asked to prepare a country background report. This document is the country background report for Japan. Its contents are: Circumstances surrounding tertiary education; Outline of the tertiary education system; The tertiary education system and the labour market; Roles of tertiary education in regions; The role of tertiary education in research and innovation; Achieving equity in and through tertiary education; Resources for tertiary education; Planning operation and control of overall tertiary education system; Assuring and improving the quality of tertiary education; Internationalisation and globalisation of tertiary education; Conclusion.

Documents from this thematic review are indexed from TD/TNC 89.551 to TD/TNC 89.585. Show less

This publication results from major reviews of national career guidance policies carried out by the OECD and the European Commission (EC) during 2001-2003. Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Korea, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the UK participated in the OECD review. The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) collected data from Belgium, France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Portugal and Sweden for the EC, and the European Training Foundation (ETF) gathered data from Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. A review by the World Bank was undertaken in 2003 in Chile, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, South Africa and Turkey. For each country, the reviews assessed how the organisation, management and delivery of career guidance services contribute to the implementation of lifelong learning and active labour market policies. Several common themes emerged from the reviews about deficiencies in national career guidance services. Many examples of good practice exist but there are major discrepancies between service organisation and delivery, and some key public policy goals. Practical solutions are provided for policy makers to address these issues. The publication covers the major policy domains involved in developing a comprehensive framework for lifelong guidance systems: meeting the career guidance needs of young people and of adults; widening access to career guidance; improving career information; staffing and funding career guidance services; and improving strategic leadership. For each of these policy areas, the publication: describes the key challenges for policy makers in trying to improve career guidance services; provides examples of good practice and of effective responses to these challenges, based on research conducted in 36 OECD and European countries; poses the questions that policy makers need to address in responding to these challenges; and provides practical options for improving policy. Show less

Demographic pressure and the youth bulge in the developing world pose a major employment challenge. This situation is exacerbated by insufficient job creation, scarce formal wage employment opportunities and vulnerability in the workplace. For these reasons, fostering youth entrepreneurship has gained importance in the global and national development policy agenda. This report aims to contribute to the ongoing debate on the role of youth entrepreneurship in generating employment in developing countries. It is based on the analysis of mixed labour force and enterprise surveys conducted in Cote D'Ivoire, Madagascar, Peru and Viet Nam, as well as evidence on the impact of entrepreneurship programmes.

This report's findings add to the global debate on youth entrepreneurship in three ways. First, it constitutes an unprecedented effort to capture the real situations and multiple faces of young entrepreneurs in selected developing countries. Second, it provides new empirical evidence on the determinants of youth entrepreneurial performance. Third, it proposes a policy roadmap based on lessons learned from recent meta-analyses of the effectiveness of entrepreneurship programmes.

Edited published abstract. Show less

The OECD annual report on jobs and employment in OECD countries reviews recent trends, policy developments, and prospects. The 2021 edition of the OECD Employment Outlook [available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 145.163] focusses on the labour market implications of the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 crisis. Country notes are available for Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

In some countries, employers used job retention programmes to cut hours while allowing workers to keep their pay and jobs; there, it is likely that the full impact of the pandemic is yet to be felt. In others, there have been unprecedented increases in unemployment, but many workers will return to their jobs (or to new ones) as economies re-open and activity picks up.

At the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, Japan managed to avoid so-called lockdown restrictions and thus total hours worked dropped rather modestly by 9 per cent over the year to the second quarter of 2020, compared with the OECD average of 15.3 per cent. Workers in low-paying occupations have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. During the last quarter of 2020, total hours worked by all persons in employment were only 2 per cent below the pre-crisis level in Japan. However, the decline in hours worked by workers in low-paying occupations was more than double (4.3 per cent), whereas those by workers in high-paying occupations actually increased by 0.6 per cent. What is more, this increase in hours worked was driven by job creation.

Edited excerpts from publisher's website and publication. Show less

Kazakhstan has made tremendous progress in ensuring universal access to primary and lower-secondary education. Nevertheless, results of international surveys reveal that almost two-thirds of students from Kazakhstan complete schooling without mastering the basic skills needed to be successful, and that student achievement is increasingly inequitable. This policy perspective provides Kazakhstan with recommendations about how to strengthen its initial teacher education and support for early career teachers in order to improve the learning outcomes of all students.

Edited excerpt from publisher's website. Show less

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Education Committee launched a thematic review of the transition from initial education to working life in 1996. The review investigated how the transition from initial education to working life for young people had changed during the 1990s and which social, education, and employment policies and programs were most effective in terms of transition outcomes for young people. The review involved 14 OECD Member countries, representing a diverse sample in terms of institutional arrangements in support of transition, level of economic development, and culture. This revised edition of the thematic review describes the key trends and conclusions to emerge from the thematic review. Chapter 1 introduces the review and its methodology; Chapter 2 examines transition outcomes; Chapter 3 focuses on the transition process; Chapter 4 identifies some of the key features of effective transition systems; Chapter 5 discusses how the transition phase can promote lifelong learning and presents two complementary approaches: one focuses on educational institutions and structures, and the other concentrates on learner-centred approaches; and Chapter 6 presents some key policy challenges for the future.

The preliminary edition of the thematic review is indexed at TD/TNC 62.156. Show less

OECD's Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) provides the first internationally comparative perspective on the conditions of teaching and learning, based on data from over 70,000 teachers and school principals who represent lower secondary teachers in the 23 participating countries. TALIS examines important aspects of professional development; teacher beliefs, attitudes and practices; teacher appraisal and feedback; and school leadership. TALIS looks at these factors through the eyes of teachers and school principals. This innovative approach was chosen in order to examine how the intended school and teacher policies of education systems are actually perceived and implemented in schools and classrooms, recognising that the best intentions will only yield results if effectively and consistently implemented in the frontline. The objective aim is to identify barriers to effective instruction. This report describes the development of the TALIS instruments and the methods used in sampling, data collection, scaling and data analysis, for those wishing to review and replicate the procedures used. Furthermore, it provides insight into the rigorous quality control programme that operated during all phases of the survey, involving numerous partners and external experts.

Published summary from OECD website. Show less

This expanded 1999 edition of 'Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in figures' contains key data on OECD countries, ranging from economic growth and employment to education and road transport. There are also new tables on carbon dioxide emissions, trade in services and the euro zone. There is a section including graphs, which provides a snapshot on subjects such as women in the job market, agricultural output, taxation, privatisation and development aid. Show less