Subject for LFS AHM 2022 Job Skills – policy need 20 June 2017, Luxembourg

1. Subject for LFS AHM 2022Job Skills – policy need20 June 2017, Luxembourg Mantas Sekmokas Unit E3 – VET, Apprenticeships and Adult learning Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion

2. Changing labour market • Digitalisation – change/creation of new jobs • Automation – destruction of jobs • Off-shoring – transfer of jobs • Overall technological change • Impact on employment, education, economic, trade (+GVCs) and industrial policies

3. Policy needs • Need to adapt training • Need to identify rapidly changing occupations • Need to forecast restructuring/displacement and design reintegration measures • Overall technological change – economic growth, competitiveness and development

4. Policy reaction in the EU • New Skills Agenda for Europe • Recommendation on Upskilling Pathways • European Pillar of Social Rights • On-going enhanced EU cooperation on VET (Copenhagen process)

5. Available information on job skills • Occupation – ISCO • However: • Jobs in the same occupation are heterogeneous • Skills requirements change over time (78% - CEDEFOP European Skills and Jobs Survey) • Even for occupations on average, only limited data on skills requirements due to sample size requirements for such analysis • Alternatives are often inferior (not anchored; supply driven or very narrow)

6. Existing main data sources • O*NET – US database on occupations. Based partly on surveys, partly on job analysis. Currently the primary base for analyses of automation risks (MIT/McKinsey...) • Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) – OECD, a limited number of questions and limited sample size • Other international surveys – European Working Conditions Survey (Eurofound), European Skills and Jobs Survey (CEDEFOP), World Bank STEP

7. Limitations of existing data sources • Often do not cover all EU28 • In most cases sample size does not allow detailed occupation-specific analysis • Often do not use a systemic framework (taxonomy) to classify job skills • Lack an anchor/benchmark

8. Methodological development – Eurofound taxonomy of tasks • Analysis of existing questions from available data sources and surveys • 5 main dimensions: • Physical tasks • Intellectual tasks • Social tasks • Methods (autonomy, teamwork, routine) • Tools (machines, ICT)

9. Measurement • Core measurement strategy: • frequency; • intensity; • importance or complexity • Additional aspect for consideration: • Task overlap/combination/multitasking • Other related issues • Change of task content over time • Educational and skills mismatch • Change in tasks v/s change in employment

10. Measuring bundles of tasks • Currently used variables usually allow only: • Measurement of single task/skills domain • Measurement comparing relative importance, etc. • Ideal measurement should allow representing a particular job profile via a bundle of tasks of different frequency/importance • Variable(s) on task overlap / combination / multitasking v/s separate could be one of step in such direction

11. Thank you