Times are changing. In a relatively short period of time the Australian, Tasmanian and worldwide economic climate has dramatically altered. This climate is yet another unprecedented scenario that requires a strategic, well thought out approach on a global scale and further ads to the challenges of the unprecedented scenario of worldwide population ageing.
While initial reactions are to scale back and batten down the hatches to ride out the storm, it is important to keep a longer term strategy in mind in terms of skill and workforce development.
While the current economic climate and the impact on superannuation investments may delay the retirement intentions of the large baby boomer cohort, they will retire eventually. These baby boomers have a wealth of knowledge and experience, qualifications and skills that cannot be replaced overnight. Sooner rather than later, more people will be exiting the workforce than entering it. It is important over the longer term that investment in skill development remains paramount, so that those remaining in the workforce and those entering it are well equipped, educated and appropriately trained to maintain productivity in the workplace.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Women and Work
I have just completed a thesis entitled Women and Work: An investigation of the utilisation of women in the Australian labour market in comparison with men and the impact, if any, of the presence of a partner and/or child.
Abstract: This thesis set out to examine the utilisation of women and women’s qualifications in the Australian labour market as compared with men. It questioned whether the policy proposal of the Commonwealth Government (2004; 2007) to increase the labour force participation rate of women, to offset the emerging gap between fiscal capacity and fiscal commitments resulting from population ageing, could be misguided and could perversely result in lower fertility rates, the very cause of population ageing.
This thesis finds that women are currently not utilised in the labour market to the same degree as men. However, the issue is not their participation rates per se (which have increased over the years) but rather their relatively low level of labour market attachment and utilisation of educational attainment through occupation. For this reason, policy intervention aimed at increasing female labour market utilisation may be a more effective strategy in increasing productivity than focussing on increasing female labour force participation rates as a solution to the potential fiscal impacts of population ageing.
Abstract: This thesis set out to examine the utilisation of women and women’s qualifications in the Australian labour market as compared with men. It questioned whether the policy proposal of the Commonwealth Government (2004; 2007) to increase the labour force participation rate of women, to offset the emerging gap between fiscal capacity and fiscal commitments resulting from population ageing, could be misguided and could perversely result in lower fertility rates, the very cause of population ageing.
This thesis finds that women are currently not utilised in the labour market to the same degree as men. However, the issue is not their participation rates per se (which have increased over the years) but rather their relatively low level of labour market attachment and utilisation of educational attainment through occupation. For this reason, policy intervention aimed at increasing female labour market utilisation may be a more effective strategy in increasing productivity than focussing on increasing female labour force participation rates as a solution to the potential fiscal impacts of population ageing.
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