BENEFITS OF VOCATIONAL skills
Skills development plays an integral part in
the economic and social prosperity of individuals, employers, communities and nations worldwide:
FOR
INDIVIDUALS
Individuals with higher levels of education earn
significantly more over the course of their lifetimes than
those with low skills[i].
- Training has a positive effect on
mental health[ii]
and physical health[iii].
- Training can increase individuals’
employability[iv]
- Skills development gives people career
progression and promotion opportunities[v].
FOR EMPLOYERS
Training can increase the likelihood of commercial
survival[vi]. Firms
which have a ‘high enterprise dynamic’, including a high
level of skill amongst employees and individuals who are able to
exercise judgement and responsibility, tend to have higher levels
of productivity[vii]. Certain types of training
can lead to improved quality,
organisational strength, customer service, reduced
complaints, staff retention, cost reductions and increased
profitability[viii].
FOR ECONOMY &
SOCIETY
Increases in human capital have a positive and significant effect
on economic growth[ix]. Skills development can play
an important role in reducing
poverty[x]. Training can lead to
reduced
crime and repeat offending rates[xi]. Various aspects of
education, such as curriculum design and communication, can have a
positive impact on
social capital and community
cohesion[xii]
. Lifelong learning can help
redress gender inequities by supporting women to
progress in their careers into higher paid jobs[xiii].
Skills development can have important benefits for local
communities. DfID’s Educating out of
Poverty? report, for example, stated: ‘If individuals learn
skills beyond the level of that of their family/immediate
neighbours, they can confer benefits on their local community
indirectly through starting enterprises that create employment,
sending home remittances, introducing farming techniques that are
imitated by neighbouring farmers, providing local services (e.g.
teachers), providing positive female role models that challenge
local perceptions, etc.’[xiv]
[i] E.g. OECD (2009).
Education at a Glance 2009. Paris: OECD.
[ii] Loretto, W., S. Platt & F.
Popham. Workplace Change and Employee Mental Health: Results from a
Longitudinal Study. British Journal of Management
21(2):526-540.
[iii] Wigley, S. & A. Akkoyunlu
(2006). Human Capabilities Versus Human Capital: Guaging the Value
of Education in Developing Countires. Social Indicators Research
78(2): 287-304.
[iv]Wittekind, A., S. Raeder & G.
Grote (2010). A Longitudinal Study of Determinants of Perceived
Employability. Journal of Organizational Behavior 31(4):
566-586.
[v] Dekker, R., A. de Grip & H.
Heijke (2002). The Effects of Training and Overeducation on Career
Mobility in a Segmented Labour Market. International Journal of
Manpower 23(2): 106-125.
[vi] Collier, W., F. Green & J.
Peirson (2005). Training and Establishment Survival. Scottish
Journal of Political Economy 52(5): 710-735.
[vii] Maglen, L, S. Hopkins & G.
Burke (2001). Training for Productivity. Adelaide:
NCVER.
[viii] E.g. McGovern, J., M.
Lindemann, M. Vergara, S. Murphy, L. Barker & R. Warrenfeltz
(2001). Maximizing the Impact of Executive Coaching: Behavioral
Change, Organizational Outcomes, and Return on Investment. The
Manchester Review 6(1): 1-9.
[ix] Cohen, D. & M. Soto (2007).
Returns to Investment in Education: A Further Update. Journal
of Economic Growth 12: 51-76.
[x] Collett, K. (2010). Skills
Development and Poverty Reduction. London: City & Guilds
Centre for Skills Development, Briefing Note.
[xi] Spangenberg, G. (2004). Current
Issues in Correctional Education: A Compilation and Discussion.
Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy Paper.
[xii] Kearns, P. (2004). VET and
Social Capital: A Paper on the Contribution of the VET Sector to
Social Capital in Communities. Adelaide: NCVER.
[xiii] Women & Work Commission
(2009). Shaping a Fairer Future: A Review of the
Recommendations of the Women & Work Commission Three Years
On. London: Women & Work Commission.
[xiv] Palmer, R., R. Wedgwood & R.
Hayman (2007). Educating out of Poverty? A Synthesis Report on
Ghana, India, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and South Africa.
London: DfID.
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