Winners and Losers: Literacy and Enduring Labour Market Inequality in Historical Perspective

Interventions Économiques pour une Alternative Sociale

关键词: knowledge-based economy;    labour market;    literacy;   

DOI  :  10.4000/interventionseconomiques.1912

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Changes in the global economy have transformed the nature of competitiveness and heightened the importance of basic skills for the economic success of those in the labour market. In Ontario, job growth and economic prosperity have been linked to the knowledge-based economy (KBE), which is looked to as a panacea that will ultimately benefit the majority of the population. We argue, however, that there are a select few who are KBE “winners” and far more KBE “losers.” Literacy (or multiliteracies), defined broadly to include print, digital and visual literacies, and numeracy, is a major factor in the ability of individuals to access the labour market and the KBE in a truly meaningful way. The need for labour market relevant literacy training policies, and the connection of literacy to the history of systemic privilege, power and labour market accessibility has been well identified by research but are not part of accepted policy practice. This research, along with the policy disconnect, are the focus of this paper. We will ground our discussion by putting it in the context of the history of education, labour and literacy training in Canada, with an emphasis on English-speaking Ontario, and then connect this to the current systemic problems of labour market accessibility.  This allows us to advocate for a policy model allowing for greater accessibility to labour markets that is founded upon a research-based development and investment model. The ability to have training that will maximize one’s potential and allow one to have the basic dignity of meaningful work makes literacy an equity issue as well as one of economic growth.

【 授权许可】

Unknown