It is the conventional wisdom to assume that in the `market model' of training found in Britain, training tends to be curtailed in recessions. Yet national level evidence shows only a small reduction in training during the recession of the early 1990s. Analysis of a survey of employers' training behaviour shows that a combination of regulations and the forces of market competition held up training activity or increased it in many companies. Many regulations were providing a floor for training activity, while the recession-intensified competition meant that firms had increasingly to fly the flag of `quality' in order to retain or expand their market share. The training requirements of the BS 5750 were widely cited. It is thus somewhat ironic that the `market model' seems to have survived the recession as much through intervention as through the decisions of individual employers. It is more accurate to describe Britain's vocational training system as an `employer-led model'.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ashton, D., Green, F. and Hoskins, M. (1989) `The training system of British capitalism: changes and prospects' in F. Green, (ed.) The Restructuring of the British Economy, Brighton: Harvester Wheatsheaf.
2.
Banham, J. (1992) `Taking forward the skills revolution', Policy Studies, 13, 1, Spring, 5-12.
3.
Campinos-Dubernet, M. and Grando, J.-M. (1988) `Formation professionelle ouvrière: Ivois modéles européenes', Formation/Emploi, 22, 5-29.
4.
Confederation of British Industry (1993) Routes for Success: Careership - A Strategy for All 16-19 Year Old Learning, London: Confederation of British Industry.
5.
Confederation of British Industry (various) CBI Industrial Trends Quarterly Survey, London: Confederation of British Industry.
6.
Cross, R. (ed.) (1988) Unemployment, Hysteresis and the Natural Rate of Unemployment, Oxford: Blackwell.
7.
Dench, S. (1992) `EMSPS - some research findings on employers' training activities in Britain'. Paper presented at the Conference on Vocational Training in Britain and Europe Post-1992, Oxford, 7-8 September.
8.
Employment Department (1992a) Labour Market and Skills Trends 1993-1994, London: Employment Department.
9.
Employment Department (1992b) `Skills needs in Britain - 1992: what training are employers doing?'Skills and Enterprise Network, 30/92, November.
10.
Employment Department (1993) Labour Force Survey: Historical Supplement, London: Employment Department.
11.
Felstead, A. (1993) The Corporate Paradox; Power and Control in the Business Franchise, London: Routledge.
12.
Felstead, A. and Green, F. (1993) Cycles of Training?: Evidence from the British Recession of the Early 1990s, University of Leicester, Department of Economics, Discussion Paper in Economics, 93/3.
13.
Finegold, D. and Soskice, D. (1988) `The failure of British training: analysis and prescription', Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 4, 3, 21-53.
14.
Green, F. (1993) `The determinants of training of male and female employees in Great Britain', Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 55, 1, February, 103-122.
15.
Green, F. (1991) `Sex discrimination in access to job-related training', British Journal of Industrial Relations, 29, June, 295-304.
16.
Greenhalgh, C.A. and Mavrotas, G. (1993) `Workforce training in the Thatcher era - market forces and market failures', International Journal of Manpower, 14, 2/3, 17-32.
17.
HMSO (1988) The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations, no. 1657 (Statutory Instrument), London: HMSO.
18.
HMSO (1990) Food Safety Act 1990, London: HMSO.
19.
House of Lords (1990) `Vocational training and re-training', Select Committee on the European Communities 21st Report, Session 1989/90, HL Paper 78-1, London: HMSO.
20.
Industrial Society (various) Industrial Society Training Trends, London: Industrial Society.
21.
Labour Party (1992) Training in Crisis: A Report on the Underfunding of the Training and Enterprise Councils, London: Labour Party.
22.
Maclagen, I. (1992) A Broken Promise: The Failure of Youth Training Policy, London: Youthaid and The Children's Society.
23.
Maguire, M. (1991) Employers' Views of Work Related Further Education, Leicester: University of Leicester, Centre for Labour Market Studies.
24.
Monks, J. (1992) `The trade union view', Policy Studies, 13, 1, 13-21.
25.
NATFHE and Youthaid (1993) Credit Limits: A Critical Assessment of the Training Credits Pilot Scheme,London: NATFHE and Youthaid.
26.
OPCS (1982) Labour Force Survey 1981, London: HMSO.
27.
OPCS (1986) Labour Force Survey 1983 and 1984, London: HMSO.
28.
Rainbird, H. (1993) `Comparative perspectives on training: Britain, France and Germany' in M. Gold (ed.) Europe: the Social Dimension, London: Macmillan.
29.
Scott, C. (1990) `Continuity and change in British food law', Modern Law Review, 53, 6, November, 785-801.
30.
Steedman, H. and Wagner, K. (1989) `Productivity, machinery and skills: clothing manufacture in Britain and Germany', National Institute Economic Review, May, 40-57.
31.
Training Agency (1989) Training in Britain: A Study of Funding, Activity and Attitudes, Main Report, Sheffield: Training Agency.
