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When looking at clients with a long history of unemployment and substantial health and/or social problems, stories of success (in terms of moving from being on cash benefits to getting a job) are limited. Thus, when a client does manage to gain employment or enter education, it represents an unusual 1 story of success seen from a political, organisational and individual perspective. In this article, we investigate empirically what can be learnt about current active labour market policies from these client cases. Methodologically this is explored through interviews with former clients who have managed to find a job despite dealing with complex health or social issues, and interviews with their former caseworkers. Thus, the article aims to provide insights into the crucial elements in making the move from vulnerable unemployed to being ready for a job, as well as finding it and keeping it.

There is growing interest in research that informs more effective practices in employment services across Europe, Australia and the USA. However, despite the ever-expanding amount of research on the implementation and efficacy of various policy programmes in practice, the knowledge on how to bring unemployed individuals closer to the labour market remains ambiguous and inconclusive. This is especially so in the context of the more vulnerable unemployed, who face physical, mental and social challenges in addition to unemployment. In this article, we examine the existing literature in terms of its potential to inform (the development of) effective employment policies. On this basis, we outline an alternative approach based on the concept of relational causality, and discuss the implications of such an approach for applied policy research.

Although the role of education, training, and life‐long learning has become widely recognised in EU social policy, not all EU citizens have had the opportunity to maintain or acquire the skills necessary for full participation in society and success in the labour market. This article examines interventions specifically designed to support vulnerable unemployed individuals for (re)entering and succeeding in the labour market. It presents a qualitative, case‐specific study of training programmes implemented by a local unit of the Public Employment Service (PES) in a Southern European country. Portugal serves as a compelling case for examining how and why the effort to equip under‐skilled and underqualified citizens with (new) skills remains challenging. Our theoretical framework builds on historical institutionalism to identify the enduring limitations of Portuguese active labour market policies, as well as other institutional and actor‐related constraints that hinder unemployed individuals from navigating the challenges of an increasingly complex and diverse labour market. To explore these dynamics empirically, we conducted a thematic analysis of semi‐structured interviews with key stakeholders—including PES staff, training providers, and unemployed participants—focusing on their perceptions, experiences, and interpretations of training programmes and their implementation. Additionally, we used supplementary sources such as official documents related to training and other labour market policies, as well as relevant statistical data, to contextualize and triangulate our findings. The findings demonstrate that institutional weaknesses, combined with the shortcomings of training programmes, fail to accommodate the specific needs and conditions of vulnerable unemployed individuals, leaving them without the skills necessary to secure stable employment and to respond effectively to the challenges posed by the ecological and digital transitions.

Este texto analiza la formación profesional en Europa en las últimas décadas, partiendo de trece documentos de la Unión Europea, de 1994 a 2020, y de documentos de normativas de la formación profesional en España. Los resultados del análisis documental confirman un enfoque economicista, más en línea con la teoría del capital humano, alejándose de lo que sería una formación para el desarrollo sostenible, como desarrollo económico y social. Este enfoque economicista se contrasta con los resultados obtenidos en la investigación realizada en la provincia de Cádiz (España) en 2018, a partir del análisis de documentos y de entrevistas en profundidad a centros de formación de organizaciones públicas y privadas, con y sin ánimo de lucro. Los centros de formación se ajustan a los criterios marcados por la normativa y por documentos de la Unión Europea, centrándose en responder a las necesidades de cualificación de las empresas en una zona con alta tasa de paro, pretendiendo contribuir, con poco éxito, a la inserción laboral de colectivos vulnerables. Por tanto, se trata de una formación focalizada en la dimensión económica, alejándose de lo que sería una formación para el desarrollo sostenible, limitándose las posibilidades de inserción laboral e integración social de estos colectivos vulnerables.

Traumatic events are common globally; however, comprehensive population-based cross-national data on the epidemiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the paradigmatic trauma-related mental disorder, are lacking. Data were analyzed from 26 population surveys in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys. A total of 71 083 respondents ages 18+ participated. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview assessed exposure to traumatic events as well as 30-day, 12-month, and lifetime PTSD. Respondents were also assessed for treatment in the 12 months preceding the survey. Age of onset distributions were examined by country income level. Associations of PTSD were examined with country income, world region, and respondent demographics. The cross-national lifetime prevalence of PTSD was 3.9% in the total sample and 5.6% among the trauma exposed. Half of respondents with PTSD reported persistent symptoms. Treatment seeking in high-income countries (53.5%) was roughly double that in low-lower middle income (22.8%) and upper-middle income (28.7%) countries. Social disadvantage, including younger age, female sex, being unmarried, being less educated, having lower household income, and being unemployed, was associated with increased risk of lifetime PTSD among the trauma exposed. PTSD is prevalent cross-nationally, with half of all global cases being persistent. Only half of those with severe PTSD report receiving any treatment and only a minority receive specialty mental health care. Striking disparities in PTSD treatment exist by country income level. Increasing access to effective treatment, especially in low- and middle-income countries, remains critical for reducing the population burden of PTSD.

Purpose Current models of inclusive workplaces are primarily based on the perceptions of vulnerable workers, whereas attention for employer’s perceptions is lacking. This scoping review addresses this issue by mapping the literature that covers employer’s perceptions on the application and importance of organisational policies and practices aimed at the inclusion of vulnerable workers. Methods A literature search for qualitative and quantitative research articles was conducted in MEDLINE, Scopus, ProQuest, PsychInfo, Google Scholar and Web of Science. Studies were included when (a) they reported on practices aimed at the inclusion, participation, or rehabilitation of (b) workers with disabilities, a low education or migration background, or who were long-term unemployed, and (c) were based on samples of employers or their representatives. Results The search resulted in 3,134 articles. In total, 38 articles met the inclusion criteria of this study. We identified seven types of inclusive practices to stimulate the inclusion of vulnerable workers that employers applied and/or perceived as valuable: senior management commitment, recruitment and selection, performance management and development practices, job accommodations and redesign of work, supportive culture, external collaborations with other employers, and monitoring. Conclusions Our review identified seven categories of inclusive practices that pertain to all stages of the employee journey of vulnerable workers. These categories move beyond those reported in studies based on employee samples, for instance by highlighting the importance of monitoring and collaborations with other employers. Hence, our findings stress that insight into employers’ perceptions about effective measures is crucial to increase labour market participation of vulnerable groups.

Background Poor health and related health literacy (HL) can make it challenging for unemployed people to enter the labor market. This study aimed to identify priority groups and the most prominent HL challenges for tailoring interventions by mapping HL challenges among vulnerable unemployed citizens in a municipality in Denmark. Methods The citizens completed questionnaires on HL and sociodemographic characteristics. We used descriptive statistics to calculate the proportion of HL challenges and characterize the participants. A latent class analysis was performed to group individuals with similar HL challenges. Results A total of 86 citizens were included in the study with a median age of 51.5 and 73.3% being female. The most frequent HL challenge was “Navigating the healthcare system” (87.2%). Two distinct classes were identified: one with few HL challenges and one with many challenges. Participants belonging to the class with many HL challenges were characterized by having lower socioeconomic positions and more health limitations compared to citizens in the class with few HL challenges. Conclusions Based on the findings interventions may be developed to improve 1) the HL in vulnerable unemployed citizens and 2) the system’s ability to accommodate citizens with poor HL. Such interventions could improve the health of the citizens and thus their labor market prospects. Depending on the target group, these should have a broad HL focus or a more specific focus on navigating the healthcare system.

Using an ethical approach to the study of employability, we question the mainstream approach to career self-direction. We focus on a specific category of employees that has been neglected in past research, namely vulnerable workers who have been unemployed for several years and who have faced multiple psychosocial problems. Building on the Ability-Motivation-Opportunity model, we examine how establishing clear expectations, developmental inducements, and social organizational goals can foster employability competences of vulnerable workers. Our study took place in the particularly relevant context of social enterprises, which have a primary goal to enhance the employability competences of vulnerable workers. Multilevel analysis of data from 38 CEOs of social enterprises, 121 leaders and 594 workers, demonstrated that establishing clear expectations and developmental inducements enable vulnerable workers to anticipate and optimize their employability competences. Furthermore, a positive association was found between establishing clear expectations and the balance dimension of employability, yet only in social enterprises that prioritize social organizational goals, suggesting the need to recognize the extent organizational goals shape opportunities for vulnerable workers. Establishing clear expectations and developmental inducements can therefore enhance vulnerable workers' employability competences in supportive contexts; however, there may be detrimental side effects to drifting away from social organizational goals.

The link between relationship violence and aspects of neighborhood concentrated disadvantage (e.g., percent of unemployed adults, percent of families below poverty level), has been established. However, the literature examining neighborhood social processes, including informal social control and social cohesion, in relation to adolescent dating violence has shown mixed results with a limited theoretical foundation and methodology. Using a social disorganization theoretical framework, this study examined the mediating role of these neighborhood social processes in the relation between concentrated disadvantage and adolescent dating violence within an urban context. Participants included 605 adult residents in 30 census tracts and 203 adolescents from neighborhoods on the West and South sides of Chicago. Neighborhood-level concentrated disadvantage was measured via Census data, adult residents reported on neighborhood social processes, and youth reported on dating violence. Informal social control was negatively associated with dating violence, and social cohesion was positively associated with dating violence. A multilevel mediation model showed that concentrated disadvantage was related to higher levels of dating violence via lower levels of informal social control. These results extend social disorganization theory to dating violence within an urban context, while also highlighting the important role of neighborhood processes on relationship violence. Implications for research and intervention programming are discussed.

This empirical study contributes towards identifying the effect of social exclusion on labor market integration of people with disabilities in Romania. Certain categories of individuals with disabilities have longer unemployment duration than others and this empirical study is focused on identifying which variables have a significant influence on exit to job hazard on Romanian labor market. The significant gap between employees without disabilities and employees with disabilities in the Romanian labor market can be explain based on certain influential factors such as: Lower productivity levels, higher training costs, differentiated work schedules, special demands, higher risk of work injuries and work-related accidents, etc. The findings reveal the lack of statistical significance for the differences between median survival time and hazard rates of disabled individuals, a function of their disability. Moreover, our results show that only an age and unemployment allowance has had a significant effect on unemployment duration and exit to a job hazard of educated individuals with disabilities.