IER News & blogs
The impact of postgraduate qualifications on employment prospects in the UK
Erika Kispeter gave a talk at the Westminster Higher Education Policy Conference online event entitled 鈥楾he graduate labour market post COVID-19' on 20 October 2020. The conference focused on how university careers services, employers and governments should prepare students for employment in the UK in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Erika鈥檚 talk on the 'The impact of postgraduate qualifications on employment prospects' drew on the results of the recently completed research project 'Degrees of Advantage? A longer-term investigation of the careers of UK graduates', the latest stage of Futuretrack, IER鈥檚 longitudinal study of graduate careers. The study follows a cohort of UK graduates who started their university education in 2006.
Sally-Anne Barnes presented on 'The distance travelled approach' at ESF+ Data Network meeting
Organised by , and , Sally-Anne Barnes gave a keynote address on 'The 鈥渄istance travelled鈥� approach: Measuring results towards employability' at the ESF+ Data Network meeting, 21 October. The meeting brought together representatives from EU member states and the European Commission to explore data collection methods for quality monitoring.
Sally-Anne's presentation included evidence from recent work with Sally Wright on distance travelled models. It provided some context for the event, which also included presentations from Paul Geraghty (ESF-funded Social Inclusion and Community activation Programme, Ireland) and 艁ukasz Mikulec (Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy, Poland).
We鈥檙e all in this together: Strategies for achieving employee retention during COVID-19 - blog by Professor Philip Taylor*
During these turbulent economic times, employers have to make many difficult decisions. They are considering the sustainability of present staffing levels while also thinking ahead to when the economy starts to pick up again. Against a backdrop of significant economic uncertainty and immense pressure from stakeholders, it is important that any important decisions made about whether to invest in or let go of staff are informed by the best available evidence.
This blog explores five aspects for employers to consider with regard to the employment of older workers, and closes with a call to action for employers.
First results from new study examining the impact of COVID-19 on working-class women in the UK published today
Working class women have borne the brunt of the cuts to working hours as employers struggle to ride out the pandemic, according to new findings published today by social inequality researchers from the University of Nottingham and Warwick's Institute for Employment Research. Working class women were the worst affected by spring鈥檚 UK-wide lockdown, with 40% reporting psychological distress in April.
Today鈥檚 briefing paper – focuses on patterns of employment and mental health in the first three months of lockdown, as revealed by data from the monthly Understanding Society COVID-19 UK survey, and explores to what extent the experience of working class women differs from middle class women and from men.
Professor Clare Lyonette from IER said: "Many working class areas in the north are included in the higher tier groups of the government's new 3-tier system of local restrictions in England. The effects of any future lockdowns, either local or national, could be far-reaching and extremely damaging for working class women who provide vital work, both paid and unpaid'.
Read the press release here.
The cumulative burden of housework, childcare, home-schooling and paid employment during the pandemic is having a disproportionate impact on women鈥檚 psychological wellbeing
New research is being conducted by at the University of Nottingham and Professor Clare Lyonette at IER, with the . Latest findings, reported in the suggest that the cumulative burden of housework, childcare, home-schooling and paid employment during the pandemic is having a disproportionate impact on women鈥檚 psychological wellbeing.
During lockdown, 70% of employed women living in couples reported bearing the main responsibility for washing/ironing (13% of men). Far more working mothers than fathers had main responsibility for childcare and 59% of employed mothers reported having main responsibility for additional home-schooling (9% of men). Women鈥檚 paid work has also been affected. More women than men are keyworkers, highest among working-class women, and a much higher proportion of female keyworkers are in frontline roles involving face-to-face interaction, putting both themselves and their families at risk, e.g. Health and social care; Education and child-care. Other women, especially working class women, have been furloughed, raising the risk of later job losses. Perhaps unsurprisingly, women's psychological wellbeing has been badly impacted, with working class women most likely to be psychologically distressed.
