In a high performance work organization (HPWO), employee basic skills are just one of many components. HPWOs feature the following: they have flatter organizational structures, have work done by teams of highly skilled workers, and have a focus on quality, customer service, and continuous improvement. The collaborative approach to workplace…

The Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) report challenged schools, parents, and businesses to help all students develop competencies in the basic skills, thinking skills, and personal qualities required for work in the current and future workplace. In response to this challenge, vocational-technical programs were…

There is evidence that those who seek employment during difficult times, but are not successful, will continue to experience ongoing hardships throughout their working lives, often developing an ongoing dependency on the social safety net. This digest describes two federal programs on the youth employment front: (1) Youth Service Canada (YSC),…

A rationale is offered for including life skills in curricula for students with special needs. Life skills are defined as encompassing daily living, personal/social, and occupational skills. Daily living skills include: managing personal finances, selecting and managing a household, caring for personal needs, safety awareness, preparing and…

In many respects, career education has never been needed more than it is today. The need to keep abreast of technological change and to participate effectively in today's high-performance workplace requires each worker to possess a set of basic competencies and a foundation of skills and personal qualities. The competencies, foundation skills, and…

A number of factors and trends contribute to an increase in older adults in the workforce including demographics, financial concerns, changing concepts of retirement, longer and healthier life spans, and demand for the knowledge and skills possessed by the current generation of older workers. Careers are now considered to be more fluid, nonlinear…

Major technological changes are occurring primarily in three fields: telecommunications, computer applications, and advanced manufacturing technology. High technology is having a great impact on every aspect of the labor market. Most new jobs will not be in the high technology field, however, and the newly created occupations will not require a…

Seven job-related basic skills identified as skills employers want are as follows: (1) learning to learn; (2) reading, writing, and computation; (3) oral communication and listening; (4) creative thinking and problem solving; (5) personal management, including self-esteem, goal setting, motivation, and personal and career development; (6) group…

Communication, mathematics, science, and vocational skills are critical to an individual's career progression, but they do not guarantee job success. Many employers believe that employability skills are of primary importance. Because of the changing nature of today's employment picture, employers need creative, flexible workers who have a broad…

Preparation for productive employment in a global economy is one aspect of National Education Goals 3 and 5. Career education can help people realize the opportunities and meet the challenges of the international workplace. The emergence of flexible, information-based technologies is a primary factor in the evolution of the global economy. New…

The most significant factors affecting the labor market during the 1980s were the United States' loss of competitiveness in the world marketplace, continued shifts in production from goods to services, changes in the skill requirements of many jobs, and demographic shifts in the population. During the next decade, incompatibility between the type…

The demographic characteristics of teenaged parents reveal a majority who are aged 18-21, live in poverty, have dropped out of school, and are unemployed and unmarried. Their potential for high school graduation is often dependent upon their support network and life course adaptation. Employment patterns of teen parents show high unemployment and…

Proficiency in a foreign language combined with knowledge and skills in another professional area is highly desirable in the marketplace. Business places the greatest emphasis on this combination, although language skills rank well below other selection factors. Most employers provide language training when necessary, but the amount of time…

Because of the changing nature of work in society, higher levels of basic skills in reading, writing, and computation are needed in all occupational areas, whether or not they are related to high technology. Although research on the relationship between job performance and basic skills is not definitive, it is clear that it is more important for…

The dual challenges of competing in a world market and rapid technological advancements have necessitated redesign of the workplace into an innovative work environment known as the high-performance workplace. This environment requires knowledge workers capable of solving problems, creating ways to improve the methods they use, and engaging…