Employment Service Providers Developing Better Labour Markets That Work

SKILLS ANTICIPATION BACKGROUND NOTE FEBRUARY 2017 EMPLOYMENT SERVICE PROVIDERS DEVELOPING BETTER LABOUR MARKETS THAT WORK The International Labour The public employment services in Organisation (ILO) describes transition and developing countries Contents public employment services face specific challenges: they are (PES) as follows: ‘usually part often constrained by low budgets, // WHAT EMPLOYMENT SERVICE of ministries of labour or, less poor staffing resources and a PROVIDERS DO often, operate as separate low reach-out and market share. Budget constraints are certainly // TYPES OF EMPLOYMENT executive agencies. They plan an issue but, even when funds are SERVICE and execute many of the active, scarce, results can be achieved and sometimes passive, labour through better targeting and more // ROLE IN SKILLS ANTICIPATION market policies used to help effective and efficient measures. AND MATCHING workers enter the labour market, Some countries with larger budgets to facilitate labour market actually show poorer results on // CHALLENGES AND SUCCESS adjustments, and to cushion the matching, demonstrating that FACTORS impact of economic transitions. appropriate management (such as // IEXAMPLES To do this, public employment strategic planning with a focus on services typically provide results, multi-level partnerships labour market information, and monitoring) are important to success. leading role, providing specialised offer job-search assistance and services for specific target groups. placement services, administer Private employment agencies also Apart from public, private and unemployment insurance contribute to better-functioning non-governmental actors, a fourth benefits, and manage various labour markets, acting either category of employment service labour market programmes as temporary work agencies providers may be considered (worker displacement or recruitment and placement - namely the career guidance assistance, retraining, public services. Some operate in a and counselling services at service employment, etc.). Public manner that is complementary schools and universities. Proper employment services must to the public services, frequently counselling during school years cooperating closely with them. provide these services to both and guidance to help pupils and Non-governmental organisations students study fields in demand jobseekers and enterprises.’ play more of a supportive than a and fit their individual talents, BACKGROUND NOTE EMPLOYMENT SERVICES have the potential to avoid risks of unemployment or over/ underemployment later in life. TYPES OF EMPLOYMENT The presence and market share of private agencies or NGOs active in SERVICES employment field in transition and developing countries varies widely. JOB MATCHING AND There is a trend to develop specific PLACEMENT regulation of private providers activity. Quality criteria are often Public employment agencies work to ensure effective job conditions for accreditation and matching, recruitment and placement. They work with cooperation with public entities. jobseekers to register them for employment, and with employers to register vacancies. The diagram summarises the typical tasks employment services fulfil all over the world. Task LABOUR MARKET allocation (or intensity with which INFORMATION (LMI) they are performed) may vary from country to country given the legal In addition to job matching, public employment services collect framework and social and economic and analyse information on the job market, and make it available context (e.g. number and profile to public authorities, employers and workers organisations, of unemployed, labour market training providers, job seekers and the general public. dynamics, links between passive and active support to jobseekers etc.). LABOUR MARKET PROGRAMMES Labour market information helps in the identification of skill gaps on the labour market so as to steer the development of specific labour market interventions. ADMINISTRATION OF UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE Public employment services also manage the administration of unemployment insurance where such schemes exist. BACKGROUND NOTE FEBRUARY 2017 BACKGROUND NOTE EMPLOYMENT SERVICES THE ROLE OF EMPLOYMENT SERVICES IN SKILLS ANTICIPATION AND MATCHING Anticipation and matching are manage, plan and implement Over the years, the basic function of core functions of labour market activities, and to design processes matching jobseekers to vacancies management. Traditionally, to support job matching. has changed. The Employment employment service providers Institutional levels may span Services have evolved, developed play a central role in matching several layers of management, their capacities and covered new jobseekers with vacancies. To administration and operational functions in the labour market. The achieve that effectively, sound staff, from a national authority main shift in matching has been a information on the current and to local employment services or more prominent focus on skills. This future developments in the labour local guidance centres; planning triggered an increased ‘appetite’ for market is essential. Therefore, over and management tasks can be identification of current and future the last decades the employment distributed among the various skills demand (e.g. a more complex service providers, mainly the public levels in many different ways. look into the current and potential ones, have become more and more Starting from the policy level, competences of the workforce and engaged in the development of the departments or ministries in demand from companies). The basic sound labour market monitoring charge of labour market affairs, functions and portfolio of services and complex mechanisms to create develop policies and regulations, and support provided to jobseekers skills intelligence. set targets and allocate resources have also changed. Nowadays, for implementation. This many employment services perform Skill needs anticipation includes translates at institutional level into assessment and validation of skills, various approaches and continuous planning, management, work heavily on the continuous procedures. Reliable anticipation development of infrastructure and adaptation of skills (training and must be based on monitoring data. staff. Employment (and training) re-training) and closely reflect skills This is a necessary component as services providers comply with demand in their career orientation future developments are rooted the procedures set at upper level, services (see diagram 1). in the present and cannot be play a crucial role in collecting adequately predicted without a on the ground information about The mandate and scope of work proper understanding of the current vacancies, jobseekers, market gives PES a leading role among situation. Administrative data demand etc. employment service providers. provided on vacancies, jobseekers Legally they are responsible for and the results of the matching Improvements in matching and implementation (sometimes process by the employment anticipation need to be considered development) of employment services and other entities can from a system-wide perspective, policies and serve their clients contribute to a better understanding where capacity building and (jobseekers and employers) of current and future skills needs. innovation is required to ensure free of charge. The strategic and the efficient implementation operational rationale of the PES As the employment services collect of labour market policies. The differs from that of both the private and analyse ‘first-hand’ labour various levels are interconnected employment agencies and NGOs. market information at national and and interdependent. On one local levels, they can guide and side, information on current and A guideline typology for influence education and labour future skills supply and demand, employment service providers and market policy. This leads to the role gathered at operational level, must their roles in matching is provided employment providers can play in flow to the higher levels where it overleaf (see table 1). matching. can feed into policy and system development. On the other side, At institutional or operational higher levels should provide level (labour market authorities, the regulatory framework and public employment services, infrastructure necessary for smooth education and training authorities operation at the lower levels. or agencies), the main task is to BACKGROUND NOTE FEBRUARY 2017 BACKGROUND NOTE EMPLOYMENT SERVICES DIAGRAM 1: SKILLS-RELATED FUNCTIONS OF EMPLOYMENT SERVICES IDENTIFICATION OF SKILLS DEMANDS ADAPTATION OF GUIDANCE AND SKILLS (TRAINING ORIENTATION ON AND RETRAINING) SKILLS SKILLS RELATED FUNCTIONS MATCHING OF PROFILING OF SKILLS PEOPLE’S SKILLS (ASSESSMENT OF SKILLS WITH JOBS AND COMPETENCES) VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION OF SKILLS TABLE 1: EMPLOYMENT SERVICE PROVIDERS BY MATCHING ACTIVITIES ACTIVITY RELATED TO MATCHING Registration (of Direct matching of Type of employment service Labour market Career guidance Labour market vacancies and vacancies with provider information and counselling training jobseekers) jobseekers Public bodies PES ** ** ** * * Public career guidance centres not within the PES (A) - - * ** - Private Employment Agencies Private job brokers ** ** - * - Temporary work agencies ** ** * * * Private providers of guidance and counselling - - * ** - NGOs Organisations promoting the interests of groups that at risk of being marginalised in the - * - * * labour market ** MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITY,

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