A Curriculum for Employment? Developing Return to Work Programmes for Women: European Dimensions
Sue Saxby-Smith and Jan Shepherd
Department of Educational Studies
University of Surrey
Summary of presentation at the 3rd International Conference “Researching Vocational Education and Training” July 14 - July 16 1999, Bolton Institute
Introduction
This paper is based upon ongoing research conducted for a LEONARDO Survey and Analysis project. The project is evaluating the effectiveness of a range of Return to Work programmes in assisting women to make a sustainable return to paid employment. Research is being conducted in four European countries, (France, Spain, Ireland and UK) and one of the project’s aims is to develop guidelines for the design, content and delivery of Return to Work programmes across Europe.
Equal opportunities is a fundamental underpinning feature in the creation of European Policy, and in 1997 a number of European initiatives were launched to combat exclusion and support women wishing to return to the labour market. The European Commission Employment Now (1998) stated that,
Women experience high rates of unemployment, account for a disproportionately large percentage of those in precarious, poorly paid or part-time employment and remain under represented in the decision making levels in the working world.
Participation rates of women in the labour market in the four countries involved in the research show considerable variation.
Differences in Participation Rates
1985 / 1995SPAIN / 27% / 31.2%
FRANCE / 49% / 52%
IRELAND / 31.4% / 35.5%
UK / 54.2% / 61.4%
Source: Eurostat 1996
Gemmeke (1999) suggests that the rise in labour market participation is ascribed to the decrease in the birth rate, increased participation in education and the growth of the service sector which traditionally employs women. In the UK for example, service sector employment is expected to continue to rise from 46% in 1996 to 49% in 2006 (Labour Market and Skills Trends 1997/1998). The increase in service sector jobs and particularly the increase in the opportunities for part-time employment, which Saunders (1997:13) asserts makes it ‘easier to arrange work to fit in around other commitments’, has encouraged female participation in the workforce. Another factor which may account for differential participation rates has been cited by Chishom (1997). She suggests that patterns of women’s working lives and the extent of state support for working mothers are shown to vary enormously across the European Community. The practice of taking a lengthy break from paid work for child rearing is uncommon in France, where social policies enable women to continue paid work throughout their lives or to take breaks with guaranteed rights of return. In contrast, Irish women with children have relatively low rates of employment and social policies which locate them in the home rather than the work place. In Spain, younger women have developed a determination to break from tradition and maintain paid work after having children, despite a lack of childcare facilities or employment protection for mothers. Lack of childcare provision presents one of the major barriers for women returning to training and employment. Michaels et al (1992:2) suggest that, ‘childcare is the overriding issue and continues to influence career options...childcare provision is neither accessible nor affordable and continues to be a major problem when re-entry to employment is contemplated’. The issue of childcare is cited by McGivney (1993) as a domestic constraint and in addition cites psychological constraints such as a lack of confidence and structural constraints such as lack of jobs and/ or training. It is evident that if women are to be able to access training provision and participate in the labour market then these barriers must be addressed. The documented barriers/constraints informed the project aim of developing guidelines for Return to Work programmes in order that these programmes meet the needs of both women returners and employers.
The 1996 Skill Needs in Britain survey found that 20% of employers thought that there was a significant gap between actual and required employee skills. The most common deficiencies were management, general communication and interpersonal skills and computer literacy. A survey conducted by the Institute of Personnel Development in 1998 identified the skills and qualities recruiters were looking for in job applicants. Amongst those cited as particularly important were interpersonal skills, team building, IT and customer care. Starting from the premise that these generic skills are important in terms of improving employability, the effectiveness of Return to Work programmes in developing skills, constitutes part of the evaluation process.
The needs of women returners in relation to their access to and participation in the labour market, have been a focus for a number of other research projects in the UK. (Spencer and Taylor, 1994; McGivney, 1993; Michaels et al, 1995). The data upon which the recommendations are based or derived from questionnaires and interviews with course providers and women returners. The LEONARDO research includes a similar approach, and in addition includes the perspectives of employers based in the regions where the Return to Work programmes are located. This additional perspective provides another dynamic to evaluating the effectiveness of Return to Work programmes and informs the development of the guidelines for effective practice in women’s training. These guidelines are designed to contribute to the development of what we have called a Curriculum for Employment; a curriculum which enhances the employability of women returners and more effectively meets their needs and those of employers.
Methodology
The partners in the four countries have each selected a short (10-16 weeks) and a long (6-12 months) Return to Work programme for evaluation. Whilst the programmes differed in terms of structure and content, all included the development of the generic skills identified. This commonability enables comparisons to be made and to identify effective practice.
Two differences which have however proved significant relate to work placements and fees. In France, Spain and Ireland, work placements are an integral part of the programmes, in the UK they are not. Also the UK differs in terms of fees. In the other three countries no fees are charged for the programmes. In the UK charges are made with a reduction for those on benefits.
At the start of the programmes, the women returners were given a questionnaire to complete (numbers ranged from 15-25 per programme), which was used to select ten respondents (five from each course in each country) to track for twelve months. Selection was made on the basis of age, educational background and length of time in the job market. Tracking is conducted through a second questionnaire which is used as a base for a semi-structure interview at the end of the programme. Two further interviews are conducted after six and twelve months. Tracking the women into employment will provide feedback regarding the utilisation of skills acquired on the Return to Work programmes and whether the women feel that the programmes have adequately prepared them for employment. At this stage in the research, only the UK (as the lead partner) has embarked upon the tracking process.
To gain the perspectives of the programme providers and employers, interviews and questionnaires are used. Employers are sent a questionnaire which is followed up by a telephone interview. The issues/ questions covered which are pertinent to this paper can be found in Appendix 1.
Perspectives on Return to Work Programmes
Data on the three perspectives have informed both the guidelines and hypothesis which constitutes the final section of the paper. The data presented in this section is taken primarily from interviews conducted in the UK, and covers both the process and content of the programmes, namely confidence building and skill development, preparation for and barriers to employment.
1. Confidence and Skill Development
The issue of confidence emerged in the interviews with the women returners during the discussion on how useful the course had been in developing their skills. Respondents were unanimous in their views that the courses had helped to develop their confidence with comments like,
‘It gave me the confidence to believe in myself. It made me feel I was someone...’ (R5)
‘It was a life changer for me and it gave me the confidence to get back to work’. (R2)
This finding accords with the other research on the experiences of Women Returner programmes. Rees (1992), cited by Summerlad and Sanders (1997:56) argues that, ‘there can be no doubt about the efficiency of returner programmes in improving confidence levels’.
The Communication and Presentation skills components were cited as being particularly useful in helping to build confidence. R8 for example said,
‘The Communication and Presentation skills were perfect for helping my confidence. At the start I didn’t have confidence. I needed to rediscover the confidence that I’d lost....Often we were given tasks to do in terms which helped us to come out of ourselves...One part of the course was a fifteen minute presentation and at the beginning we didn’t think we’d manage it but everybody did, it was wonderful.’
In discussion with the course leader for this programme she said that the ‘hidden agenda’ is building confidence and self-esteem. The process of confidence building is linked to the teaching and learning strategies used on the programme, particularly the utilisation of prior knowledge and experience and teamwork.
Whilst the programme was regarded by the women returners as effective in developing communication and problem solving skills, they were not so positive about the development of their IT skills. The IT component was offered at a time outside their normal timetable and coincided with the end of the school day which made it very difficult for those women with children.
‘There was very little IT and it was at a difficult time of the day for me. It is very important and women need to be encouraged to get into it.’ (R8)
The importance of IT skills in improving employability emerged as a key theme in the interviews with the women.
‘It is very important...somebody who hasn’t been in an office in 10 years is going to notice dramatic change. To actually know the difference between an operating system and a word processing package and how to double click a mouse is going to make a difference.’ (R9)
Discussion with the programme leaders on this issue corrobarated the points made by the women repondents. IT had been offered at a time outside of the normal timetable, primarily because of a pressure on facilities and take-up had been poor. She suggested that if IT is to be offered as an integral part of the course then it needs to be offered during the timetabled sessions.
2. Preparation for and barriers to Employment
The main issue raised in the interviews was the provision of work placements. The UK courses do not have a work placement as an integral component in contrast to the programmes in France, Spain and Ireland. The perceived value of a work placement was linked to how clear the respondents were about the type of job they wanted to do. Responses were varied,
‘Whatever work placement you do you could only see one area. It would be useful when I’m clearer about what area I want to go into’. (R4)
One of the respondents who had completed the programme and had moved into an administrative post said,
‘Yes, I think work placements are a good idea because the course was very much an ideal world situation, and we know realistically that’s not the case. A work placement would help because it’s a gently, gently approach.’ (R10)
Disappointment was expressed by one respondent, that there was no attachment to local industry,
‘I’d imagined that people would come from local industry to talk about a related topic... I don’t feel there has been this relationship with local industry. It has concerned me that there isn’t that sense that they are quite close to local industry’. (R7)
The data from employers does in fact reveal that none of them had any involvement with Return to Work programmes and did not provide work placements. This is due primarily to a lack of awareness of the existence of such programmes rather than a deliberate policy of non-involvement. R10 did however raise an important question, ‘what would employers gain?’ She did then go on to make the suggestion that the provision of workplacements could be sold to employers on the basis that it is a cost effective way of seeking employees and trying them out, before they are paid.
‘The company I work for has spent a lot of money on advertising without getting anyone suitable. It’s actually expensive to take on staff, so you are getting an idea of what they are like before the odd disaster, which most companies have, certainly a growing one like ours.’
The programme leader suggested that work shadowing and mentoring would be more valuable than a work placement particularly for those women who were unsure of what type of job they wanted to go into.
Work placements within business organisations are, however, working effectively in Spain. Features of the scheme are:
· A contract is signed between the course provider and the organisation.
· The maximum duration of the placement is equal to the total length of the course undertaken.
· The business organisation receives a grant of 1500 pesetas per day
· Trainees may be eligible for a grant.