Outlines trends and challenges in job skills development, theoretical links between human capital and economic performance, methodological and measurement problems in analyzing return on investment. Presents case studies of approaches in France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with public policy implications. (SK)

The percentage of high school graduates in the rural South improved during the 1990s but lagged behind urban figures; the percentage of rural college graduates grew slightly. Rural-urban differences in educational attainment were even greater among minorities. The rural-urban income gap also widened and is not expected to improve, with few new…

Analysis of labor market trends for physicians considers potential indicators of change and what these indicators show. The article concludes that despite some changes in the market, it is too early to identify a departure from trends. Generalist positions are becoming more attractive, but specialist numbers continue to increase. Little indication…

Characteristics of hired farmworkers have changed little during the 1990s. These workers continue to earn about 58 percent as much as all wage and salary workers. Data tables and figures present characteristics of farmworkers and all workers: age, gender, race, educational attainment, citizenship, region, earnings, and occupations. (TD)

Discusses what center directors can do to reduce staff turnover. Presents guidelines for the interview process including: (1) preparing before the interview to ensure the interview is focused and will produce meaningful responses; and (2) conducting the interview by developing a rapport, listening, and giving a realistic description of the job.…

Describes adolescent experiences in completing school and commencing adult work. Identifies the threats to preparing youth for adult work and describes the increasing national and international recognition of the significance of youth for economic and social development. Considers broad policy implications and details actions to address challenges…

Investigated antecedents, correlates, and consequences of adolescent employment among low-income, African American youth. Found that those who had repeated a grade were more likely to enter the workforce at later ages, those who entered the workforce earlier were more likely to complete high school, and stable employment during adolescence had…

The impact of information and communications technologies on jobs is not yet known and no outcome is inevitable. Technology-driven changes in organizational structures, employment relations, worker autonomy, and work organization will not automatically result in higher job quality. (Contains 92 references.) (SK)

This article explores how labor market trends and current employment assistance policies affect reemployment opportunities and emotional well-being in a sample of female dislocated apparel workers. The study follows the displaced women from the time the plant closed for 6 months to assess their financial and emotional well-being as they reentered…

This article deals with the question of how the segmentation of higher education participation connects with the segmentation of the graduate labor market into jobs with different levels of quality. With data comprising educational and labor market histories of graduates with Master's degree from nine European countries, the author analyses how…

It's no news that Australian academics, like Australian cricketers, are getting older (and perhaps tireder). But the exact dimensions of the sector's staffing crisis haven't been clear. Graham Hugo has been studying the figures in detail, and he suggests that the problem may in fact be worse than has been thought. Around a quarter of the academic…

According to a recent "Harvard Business Review" piece by author Daniel H. Pink, MBA graduates are, in many ways, becoming this century's blue-collar workers--people who entered a workforce that was full of promise only to see their jobs move overseas. At the same time, businesses are realizing that the only way to differentiate their goods and…

Since 1997, the key trend in work has been the widening gap between good jobs and bad jobs. CONFINTEA took place in the middle of an international boom in high-tech development, with attendant optimism around creation of a "knowledge economy". While the subsequent crash of this sector is no doubt temporary, it draws attention to the…

College students who plan on entering the labor market can expect to see more job opportunities in the spring of 2007, according to information supplied by 864 companies and organizations to this year's Recruiting Trends Report. After two years of double digit growth, the expansion will slow to a modest 4% to 6%. Two opposing factors appear to be…

Job announcements often work to either encourage or discourage prospective applicants. The purpose of this investigation was to determine if gender bias existed within the job announcements for interscholastic athletic administrators. The study's results revealed that over a two-year period there were 301 advertisements for positions in the state…