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Vocational education in the United States is complex having been impacted by philosophical, educational, political, economic and societal factors since its inception. Vocational education is defined as, a large and diverse educational enterprise, spanning both secondary and postsecondary education. [It] encompasses a tremendous number of programs designed to prepare students for employment and for living. Excerpt from publication.

The volume from which this chapter is taken is available in VOCEDplus at TD/IRD 88.423. Show less

The broad goals of the US Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration's Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program were to: (1) increase attainment of degrees, certificates, and other industry-recognized credentials that provide skills for employment in high-wage, high-growth fields; (2) introduce or replicate innovative and effective curricula that improve learning that is relevant to employment; and (3) improve employment outcomes for participants, especially those eligible for Trade Adjustment Assistance and other economically dislocated and low-skilled adult workers. This report analyzes the education and employment outcomes of TAACCCT participants at the three consortium colleges during the first two and a half years of program implementation.

The report provides background on competency-based education (CBE) approaches nationwide, a summary of key findings from the earlier studies of CBE implementation at the consortium colleges, and an overview of the research questions addressed and the corresponding data and analytic methods. This is followed by a description of the summative outcomes of participants in the grant-funded programs at each college, and a discussion of factors that influenced these outcomes. Next, the results of quasi-experimental outcome analyses are presented, examining how participants fared in comparison to non-participants in similar information technology (IT) programs at the consortium colleges. Finally, the report offers an integrative discussion of the summative outcome evaluation's findings, referencing earlier implementation findings to highlight overarching lessons for the field.

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In this paper we estimate by matching techniques the effects of a French retraining program on the re-employment rate of displaced workers. This program, called 'Conventions de conversion', was intended to improve re-employment prospects of displaced workers by proposing them retraining and job seeking assistance for a period of six months beginning just after the dismissal. Our empirical analysis is based upon non-experimental data collected by the French Ministry of Labour. Matching estimates show that this program succeeded in increasing the employment rate of trainees by approximately six points of percentage in the medium-term, namely in the second and third years after the date of entry into the program. This improvement is essentially due to an increase of their re-employment rate in regular jobs, namely jobs under long-term labour contracts.

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Rapid and intense education and training will be a key driver for Australia's economic recovery as we emerge from the prevailing crisis. The way we respond through education and training will be a major influence on the recovery of the economy and the broader community. An open, high quality education system for skills formation is seen as one of the four key pillars for a well-functioning labour market.

If Australia is to rebuild and provide access to jobs in all emerging and continuing industries, our education and training outcomes need to closely align with the opportunities in the labour market as they re-emerge. All workers must receive the training needed to allow them to undertake productive and engaged roles in order to better contribute to renewal and innovation in the workplace. The [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 crisis came at a time when Australia was already suffering from a range of skills issues and our education and training system faced challenges in developing the relevant, quality skills in the timeframes required. Highly skilled jobs are increasingly recognised as important to contribute to roles emerging through digital transformation. The crisis has forced many companies to shift further into new technologies. It has highlighted and created urgency around skills broadly and provides impetus to address them. But they must now be accelerated through renewed strategies and funding measures.

Education and training must be related to business growth needs, integrated with industry strategies and include innovative approaches that better anticipate immediate-, short- and medium- term skill priorities for industry sectors. The training then available must be easy to access and relevant for individuals to gain employment in roles that are often different from the past. Strategies must be developed for all workforce age categories and must facilitate the mobility of individuals by providing recognition of achievement. Our recommendations focus on major labour market programs supported by necessary education and training system reforms.

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There are many definitions of 'Industry 4.0'. A comprehensive one is that 'Industry 4.0' is the current trend towards automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies which are based on digital technology. It includes 'Cyber-Physical Systems' (CPS), the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing, and has an impact on all economic sectors. One of the highly relevant questions concerns the qualification requirements for employees on the 'shop-floor' and at the middle employment level. Depending on the implementation level of Industry 4.0 in companies, vocational education and training for the workforce is highly relevant and the vocational education system has to respond to the needs and expectations of these changes in the work world. Successful responses of the vocational system to the demands of Industry 4.0 have to focus on curriculum development and training of both skilled and highly skilled workers.

This article, therefore, makes use of a framework which refers to the core trends of the expected impact of Industry 4.0 to competences outlined in the different scenarios of the development of Industry 4.0. These scenarios outline two main types of changes caused by Industry 4.0: (1) changes in the content of work processes for applied technologies, accomplished tasks, work organisation and other factors; and (2) micro-structural changes of work and work processes resulting in vanishing and emerging occupations and professions. The first type of change enhances new competence needs and fosters adjustments and updating of qualifications whereas the second type of change often leads to the emergence or the disappearance of qualifications. Both types of change foster different shifts in the structure of qualifications

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In addition to hearing the findings from national and international research about how governments and communities are working together to help displaced workers transition to new jobs, the program also featured two interactive panel discussions. Speakers from industry, government and training organisations shared insights from successful training and re-skilling initiatives that lead to successful skills transfer and the attainment of jobs, and the role [vocational education and training] VET plays in re-skilling displaced workers and how the sector is preparing for the future.

Published abstract.

The available presentations are: The great transition: industrial shocks and industrial transformation / John Spoehr; Northern lights: practical lessons from the Nordic countries / Andrew Scott; Industry restructuring and job loss: helping older workers get back into employment / Kaye Bowman; Vulnerable workers and occupational mobility: towards a skills transferability framework / Darryn Snell and Victor Gekara. Show less

Restructuring in the Australian manufacturing industry has resulted in many Australians being displaced from their jobs. This particularly impacts older, lower-skilled workers. Involving an extensive review of past research and case studies in four states, this research identifies practices that can assist with the successful skills transfer, re-skilling and the attainment of new jobs by displaced older workers in the manufacturing industry.

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This good practice guide is based on the report 'Industry restructuring and job loss: helping older workers get back into employment' by Victor J. Callan and Kaye Bowman [indexed at TD/TNC 122.10]. The aim of the research was to identify evidence-based practices that led to successful skills transfer, re-skilling, training and the attainment of new jobs for older workers displaced from often lower-skilled jobs in the manufacturing industries. This guide informs employers, employment placement agencies and related support services, training providers and overall coordinating agencies in the design of programs that help displaced older workers find new jobs.

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The impending car plant closures in Australia and the general decline of the manufacturing industry has led to a structural adjustment of the labour market. This in turn has implications for the skill needs of the labour market. This paper examines the education and training needs of workers affected by the impending car plant closures. In doing so, it examines two cases of car closures for lessons learnt - Mitsubishi Motors Australia and MG Rover in England. While there are many lessons learnt from these cases and several elements of good practice, considerations for training include skills transferability, the training needs of older workers and training to meet the needs of the local community.

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The trends outlined in this paper and the broader evidence suggest that new or enhanced policies to increase the quantity and quality of job-related training in the UK are required, particularly for younger workers or those with lower levels of educational attainment. Increased support for adult education and training announced since the onset of [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19, including the National Skills Fund, and short-term incentives for apprentices are welcome.

The evidence suggests that further action across the following four areas could be effective in terms of increasing employer provision of job-related training: (1) human capital tax credits: these can help incentivise businesses to invest in training their workforce; such a mechanism could be piloted in specific areas where displacement has been particularly acute, or where significant change is anticipated in the future (e.g. greening the car industry); (2) a more broadly defined Apprenticeship Levy: reforms could be considered to more effectively target younger workers and to broaden training investments covered by the scheme; (3) further devolution of skills policy: increased devolution of apprenticeship and training policy should be considered where local knowledge of skills gaps and opportunities can increase its effectiveness; and (4) job creation and retraining schemes: embedding re-skilling or up-skilling in new programmes of job creation, including those associated with net-zero-aligned investments, with stronger incentives for businesses and support for individuals.

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