School-to-Work Transition in Comparative Perspective

Incisive and forward-thinking in its approach, this prescient book investigates the conditions of the often unstable school-to-work transition (SWT) period, calling for an improvement in labour market entry processes in order to facilitate the smooth integration of school leavers into employment. School-to-Work Transition in Comparative Perspective captures the complex nature of SWTs by proposing and evaluating a new set of metrics which can act as a composite indicator of early employment security. Case studies in the form of biographies from individuals who have experienced turbulent transitions are then analysed in order to outline potential lessons from these lived experiences. Through detailed multi-disciplinary study, the book delivers a cross-country comparative assessment of the SWT period, providing new insights into the complex and dynamic nature of this transition process. It further examines what models of SWT are present in post-socialist countries, with a specific focus on Central and Eastern European states. This compelling book will be an important read for students, academics and researchers in the fields of sociology and social policy, labour policy, welfare states, education and economics. Its presentation of new measures through which to evaluate the SWT period will also greatly benefit professionals and practitioners working in education, labour policy and welfare states.

Table of Contents:
Contents: 1 Introduction to School-to-Work Transition in Comparative Perspective 1 Dominik Buttler, Maciej Ławrynowicz, Piotr Michoń PART I NEW INDICES IN SCHOOL-TO-WORK TRANSITION RESEARCH 2 Constructing a composite indicator of early employment security 9 Maria Symeonaki, Glykeria Stamatopoulou and Dimitris Parsanoglou 3 Employment quality of young workers in Europe and its determinants 38 Dominik Buttler PART II DETERMINANTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF TURBULENT TRANSITIONS 4 Learning from precarious trajectories: portraits of young adults in four European countries 65 Margherita Bussi, Ondřej Hora, Maciej Ławrynowicz and Mi Ah Schoyen 5 Recruiters’ valuation of young people’s employment insecurities in Bulgaria and Switzerland: making sense of job-hopping and unemployment in the hiring process 89 Christian Imdorf, Matthias Pohlig, Lysann Zander 6 Do the interactions with employment services and other institutions facilitate school-to-work transitions? Experiences of young people in Bulgaria, Czechia and Poland 122 Tom‡š Sirov‡tka, Ondřej Hora, Veneta Krasteva and Maciej Ławrynowicz PART III TOWARDS A NEW TYPOLOGY OF TRANSITION REGIMES. THE CASE OF POST-SOCIALIST COUNTRIES 7 School-to-work transition regimes in post-socialist countries: an introduction 157 Irene Dingeldey and Dominik Buttler 8 School-to-work transition in Czechia: integration of a majority, marginalization of some 175 Ondřej Hora, MarkŽta Hor‡kov‡ and Tom‡š Sirov‡tka 9 School-to-work transition in Bulgaria: smooth for some, precarious for many 202 Veneta Krasteva 10 School-to-work transition in Latvia: Many paths, few pathbreakers 228 Olga Rajevska, Anna Broka, Ilona Gehtmane-Hofmane 11 School-to-work transition in Poland: a false reality of numbers 260 Piotr Michoń 12 Transition from education to work in Bulgaria, Czechia, Latvia and Poland: a comparative summary 289 Piotr Michoń 13 Conclusions on school-to-work transition in comparative perspective 304 Dominik Buttler, Maciej Ławrynowicz, Piotr Michoń Index

About the Author :
Edited by Dominik Buttler, Maciej Ławrynowicz and Piotr Michoń, Associate Professors, Department of Labour and Social Policy, Poznan University of Economics and Business, Poland

Review :
‘This highly original and innovative book covers issues and groups of countries that have rarely been dealt with in cross-national research. The editors and contributors combine quantitative and qualitative data in a way that enriches our understanding of young peoples’ trajectories, employment quality, job insecurity, job entry and the role of welfare systems. This book is a significant contribution to the field.’