The Employability of Senior Workers: The Importance of Social Networks

1
The Employability of Senior Workers The
Importance of Social Networks

• Dr Kaberi Gayen, Dr Emma Hollywood,
  Professor Ron McQuaid Dr Robert Raeside

Employment Research Institute Napier
University Craiglockhart Campus Edinburgh
Telephone [phone] Email r.mcquaid_at_napier.ac.
uk r.raeside_at_napier.ac.uk
2
Basic Premise

• 30 years ago people entered work, formed
  friendships and then their world changed
• No longer were their work based skills as
  important as manufacturing changed to a service
  economy
• Many over the age of 50 were not in employment
• In the absence of formal qualifications often it
  is not what you know but who you know

3
Need for the Study

• Population Ageing (2002-27 No. of 16-29 year olds
  down 18, 30-22 down 23, 45-59 down 9, 60-74 up
  36).
• Activity rates among 50-SPA vary from 86 in
  Shetland to 52 in N. Lanarkshire (67 in
  Scotland) (2004)
• Disney et al (1997) observe, half of men and one
  third of women of aged over-50 leave work before
  state pension age in the UK
• Brown (2000) and Hollywood et al (2003) suggest
  that the Scottish economy may be adversely
  affected by the low level participation of people
  aged over 50 to state pension age and the
  unemployment among this age group is higher in
  Scotland than elsewhere in the UK
• Older workers are particularly disadvantaged,
  even in relatively buoyant labour markets, due to
  individual aspects such as qualifications, job
  search strategies and perceived age
  discrimination (McQuaid and Lindsay, 2002)

4
Method

• Survey Questionnaire
• Focus on respondents demographic, socio-economic
  social network characteristics, (Granovetter,
  1995)
• Interest in human and social capital, (Lin et al,
  1981)
• Four groups
• Unemployed over fifty years old but below state
  pension age
• Employed over fifty years old but below state
  pension age
• Unemployed below the age of fifty
• Employed below the age of fifty

5
The sample
196 people interviewed provided data on 530
individuals Sample centred in Edinburgh Fairly
representative of employment patterns in
Edinburgh However construction is under
represented
6
Characteristics

• More people under 50 live alone
• 58 own their own homes, 23 rent from the local
  authority
• 25 of those unemployed in the 50 age group were
  previously employed in manufacturing only 13
  of those unemployed under fifty were previously
  employed in this sector
• Both groups reported Job Seekers Allowance as the
  main benefit received
• The older group rely more on Job Centres, friends
  and family in job search than younger
  counterparts, who make more use of internet and
  direct approaches
• Both groups found jobs in the service sector to
  be acceptable
• Lack of IT skills stated as the most important
  barrier to employment

7
Barriers to Employment
8
Barriers to Employment
9
Human Capital
Work Qualifications
Older group have fewer academic
qualifications But more work based
qualifications More in part time work
10
Social Network Findings

• Both age categories had similar number of
  contacts (mean 2.7 people)
• Unemployed had on average 1.9 contacts while
  those in employment had 3.63 contacts
• The under fifties are in more contact than those
  over fifty
• The under fifties feel more influenced by their
  network members than the older group, as do those
  in employment
• The under fifties discuss more frequently about
  work opportunities with their network members
  than the older group, as do those who are not in
  employment

Number of Contacts who are in Work
Number of Contacts
Relative Job Status of Contacts
11
Social Networks
Strength of Ties
12
Social Networks
Key
13
Initial Findings

• Social networks are important to explain peoples
  employment status (2 way causation)
• Employed people have more contacts
• Employed people have both higher human capital
  and stronger social capital
• Older people who are out of work and looking for
  jobs have fewer ties and very low social capital
  in terms of their social network

• There is a need to
• Conduct surveys in other areas to try and obtain
  greater socio-economic diversity of the sample
• Triangulate findings by using alternative sample
  strategies, such as snowball samples, to measure
  the reciprocity of the relationships, which is a
  basic property of social network analysis
• Reassess the importance of social networks
  amongst the sample at other time points, perhaps
  in one year and three years in the future
• Supplement findings with ethnographic research
  based on observation of some sub-groups of the
  sample
• Attempt to achieve some face validity by
  reporting results back to parts of the sample to
  ensure that the researcher correctly interpreted
  their responses, for instance by using focus
  groups

14
Policy Recommendations

• Employability related policies need to more
  systematically take account of social networks.
  As the social networks of the not employed people
  are so limited, especially among the older
  unemployed, job search and support agencies
  should work to help fill some of the roles of
  social networks. They should disseminate
  knowledge and support social links. The ideas
  based upon the former Job Clubs or Pathways to
  Work are of interest.
• It was found that the importance of human capital
  amongst the fifty year old plus group may not be
  as strong as that of social capital. Consequently
  agencies should focus more on trying to enhance
  the social capital of the over fifties, in
  addition to promoting life long education and
  qualifications.
• There is a clear socio-economic gradient in terms
  of strength of social networks in that those who
  are poorer in society have weaker and less
  connected networks. Agencies should actively
  tackle this aspect of social exclusion.

15
References

• Brown, R. 2000. Getting Old and Grey? The
  Implications of Demographic Change and Population
  Ageing for the Scottish Labour Market, Glasgow
  Scottish Enterprise.
• Disney, R., Grundy, E. and Johnson, P. 1997. The
  Dynamics of Retirement Analyses of the
  Retirement Survey. DSS RR42, London.
• Hollywood, E., Brown, R., Danson, M. and McQuaid,
  R.W. 2003. Older Workers in the Scottish Labour
  Market A New Agenda, Universities of Stirling
  and Strathclyde Scotecon. http//www.scotecon.net
  /publications/McQuaid20older20workers20Full20R
  eport.pdf
• Granovetter, M. 1995. Getting a Job A Study of
  Contacts and Careers, 2nd edition, University of
  Chicago Press Chicago.
• Lin, N., Ensel, W., and Vaughn, J. 1981. Social
  resources and strength of ties structural
  factors in occupational status attainment,
  American Sociological Review 46 393405.
• McQuaid, R.W. and Lindsay, C. 2002. The
  Employability Gap Long-term Unemployment and
  Barriers to Work in Buoyant Labour Markets,
  Environment and Planning C- Government and
  Policy, 20(4) 613-628.

16

• Dr Kaberi Gayen, Dr Emma Hollywood,
  Professor Ron McQuaid Dr Robert Raeside

Employment Research Institute Napier
University Craiglockhart Campus Edinburgh
Telephone [phone] Email r.mcquaid_at_napier.ac.
uk r.raeside_at_napier.ac.uk
17
Barriers to Employment
18
Social Networks
Strength of Ties
Key