Youth Transitions, the Labour Market and Entry into Employment: Some Reflections and Questions

This research paper explores what we know about the process of transitions from education into the labour market, with a particular focus on the UK. There is strong evidence that even before the current recession, right across the developed world, transitions were becoming longer, more complex and conditional than they used to be. The paper explores what structural factors may underlie these changes and their implications for policy makers and those working within the education and training system. The paper suggests that insofar as these developments can be addressed by policy, a major consideration is the role that employers may need to play, not least in terms of the attitudes and behaviours that they display towards the process of recruitment, selection, induction and development of new entrants to workforce.