Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy 2002, volume 20, pages 613 ^ 628

DOI:10.1068/c22m

The `employability gap': long-term unemployment and barriers

to work in buoyant labour markets

Ronald W McQuaid, Colin Lindsay

Employment Research Institute, Napier University, Redwood, Spylaw Road, Edinburgh EH10 5BR,
Scotland; e-mail: r.mcquaid@napier.ac.uk, c.lindsay@napier.ac.uk
Received 10 August 2001; in revised form 14 February 2002

Abstract. We analyse the main barriers limiting the employability of long-term unemployed job
seekers within a local labour market characterised by generally high levels of demand. We use four
key elements of employability (employability assets, the deployment of assets, the presentation of
assets, and context) as an analytical framework in order to analyse the manner in which job seekers'
personal characteristics, social and family circumstances, and perceptions of the labour market affect
their ability to pursue employment opportunities. The results of interviews carried out with 115 long-
term unemployed job seekers show that individual and family circumstances and attitudes towards
work and job seeking are likely to be increasingly important barriers given the context of a relative
lack of demand-side problems and the availability of lower-skilled jobs in expanding industries.
In particular, many long-term unemployed job seekers were reluctant to seek jobs in the expanding
service sectors of the local economy. Although the concept of employability provides a useful
theoretical and policy framework for analysing long-term unemployment issues, models based upon
an employability framework should be expanded to incorporate the role of employers and so integrate
supply-side and demand-side perspectives.

1 Introduction
Even within buoyant labour markets characterised by low overall unemployment, there
often remain pockets of high long-term unemployment. In relatively depressed urban
areas the tenacity of long-term unemployment has traditionally been explained either
with reference to localised demand deficiencies or as a function of a perceived skills
mismatch and other supply-side problems. Recent labour-market policy, both in
general and in areas of low unemployment in particular, has been focused upon the
supply-side factors. The rationale for this approach is partly rooted in the general argu-
ment that the existence of an inflexible, low-skilled, low-mobility labour force represents a
crucial constraint both on economic growth and on the ability of individuals
to be integrated into the labour market. This should be addressed through long-term
investment in human capital (for example, DfEE, 1998; OECD, 1994; 1996).
In response, critics of the supply-side approach point to the problem of low
aggregate demand in specific local economies, which may be the result of factors
such as the changes in demand at the sectoral or national level, adverse local industrial
structures, or infrastructural weaknesses (Peck, 1999; Turok and Edge, 1999). It has
also been argued that further analysis of other demand-side factors, such as the role of
employer attitudes and practices, is necessary in understanding why some people have
greater difficulties in finding employment (Adams et al, 2000; Fletcher, 1998).
However, although local demand conditions are important, the problem of appa-
rently trend-resistant long-term unemployment has remained, even in many vibrant
local economies.(1) This has prompted attempts to seek a fuller understanding of what
makes people employable, in order to inform appropriately holistic policy responses.
The refocusing of the unemployment debate on the concept of `employability' has
(1) At a UK level the decline in long-term unemployment has fallen slower than the overall decline

in unemployment levels.
614 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

provided an important opportunity for researchers and policymakers to move beyond

`stand-alone' supply-side and demand-side explanations and solutions.
Employability has become established as a central concept in the development and
implementation of active labour-market policies in the United Kingdom and beyond
(for example, CEC, 1999; DfEE, 2000; HM Treasury, 2001). Yet the term itself has been
used in a number of contexts and with reference to a range of meanings. It is only the
relatively recent emergence of employability as an all-embracing objective for national
and cross-national policies addressing unemployment that has resulted in attempts to
arrive at a thorough definition. To this end Hillage and Pollard (1998) have suggested
that employability can be defined as an individual's ability to gain initial employment,
maintain employment, move between roles within the same organisation, obtain new
employment if required, and (ideally) secure suitable and sufficiently fulfilling work.
Furthermore, Hillage and Pollard argue that the extent to which the individual is able
to attain these goals is governed by the interaction of four key elements or `components'
of employability, namely: the individual's `employability assets', or personal skills and
attributes; the presentation of those assets to prospective employers; the `deployment' of
those assets, reflecting the individual's ability to act strategically in pursuing opportuni-
ties; and `context factors' such as the individual's wider social and family circumstances,
local labour-market conditions, and the attitudes and recruitment practices of employers
(see also Atkinson et al, 1996; Tamkin and Hillage, 1999).
Hillage and Pollard's definition and deconstruction of the concept of employability
provide a useful, basic framework for policy analysis. However, comparatively little
research has been undertaken to identify the particular gaps in employability preventing
long-term unemployed people from entering work, despite the seemingly advantageous
labour-market circumstances provided by buoyant local economies. In this paper we
investigate employability and the nature of the `employability gap' (that is, the relative
lack of employability, as defined above) affecting long-term unemployed job seekers (those
who have been unemployed and actively seeking work for more than one year) within a
buoyant, city-based local economy characterised by labour shortages across a number of
sectors and skill levels. Therefore there are relatively insignificant demand problems for
most types of occupation. Indeed, the context for the research summarised below was
unusual in terms of studies of long-term unemployment in that the local economy in
question (namely Edinburgh) currently benefits from a particularly vibrant labour market,
with citywide unemployment rates well below the Scottish and UK averages. At the
time of the completion of fieldwork, the city's claimant unemployment rate stood at
2.6%, compared with the Scottish and UK averages of 4.8% and 3.8%, respectively
(Employment Service Information Unit, personal communication, July 2000).
In section 2 we briefly examine the theoretical foundations of the concept of
employability, and its increasing importance in the arena of active labour-market
policy. Then in section 3 we discuss definitions of employability. In section 4 we
present the results of a study into long-term unemployed people in Edinburgh. Finally,
conclusions are drawn regarding the nature of the particular form of `employability
gap' experienced by the long-term unemployed within this relatively high-demand
labour market.

2 The concept of employability

Employability, a relatively obscure concept a decade ago, now commands a central
place in labour-market policies in the United Kingdom and many European states. At
the supranational level, employability forms one of the four pillars of the European
Employment Strategy, where the concept is closely linked to that of the perceived `skills
gap' affecting the labour force in many member states (CEC, 1999). In the United
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 615

Kingdom the focus on employability (and particularly on providing a `fresh start' to the
young unemployed who have been out of work for at least six months) in the EU-level
strategy has been replicated in the government's New Deal programme (DfEE, 2000).
Indeed, the government has described the New Deal as being defined by the principles
of ``quality, continuity and employability'' (DfEE, 1997a).
There remains controversy over the strategies applied by government agencies
in an effort to raise the employability of job seekers. Some theorists point to the
heavily supply-side focus of recent government initiatives which supposedly address
employability in all its aspects, arguing that policies such as the New Deal do little to
overcome the fundamental problem facing all such welfare-to-work programmes: the
strong area-based correlation between weak labour demand and high `welfare usage'
(Peck, 1999). The `jobs gap' that exists in many of Britain's northern inner cities cannot,
it is suggested, be addressed without greater reference to policies to stimulate local
labour demand (Martin et al, 2000; Turok and Edge, 1999; Webster, 2000).
Indeed, such demand-side measures would appear to be called for by a commit-
ment to policies focused on raising employability including ``the relationship between
personal circumstances and local labour market conditions'' (Hillage and Pollard,
1998, page 12). However, current employment policies such as the New Deal primarily
focus on the skills deficits and job-search strategies of individual job seekers, rather
than on deficient demand within local labour markets (with policies to improve
demand operated separately, for example, through regional development agencies).
The supply-side emphasis of the government's welfare-to-work agenda therefore risks
creating a situation in some areas where the `employability assets' of the long-term
unemployed are improved without the end result being them getting a job. Such a
scenario risks undermining the credibility of welfare-to-work programmes in econom-
ically depressed areas where the new initiatives are most needed (Lindsay, 2001;
Webster, 1999).
The concept of employability as used within the broader context of recent British
employment policyhas tended to reflect an acknowledgement of the need for individ-
uals to possess transferable skills in order to operate effectively within an increasingly
flexible (and insecure) labour market. Strategic framework documents outlining the
current government's labour-market policy priorities have drawn attention to the fact
that: ``an individual's employment security increasingly depends not upon attachment
to a single employer, but on their having skills that will attract a range of employers''
(DfEE, 1997b). The theoretical antecedents can partly be traced back to human-capital
theory (Becker, 1975; Bennett et al, 1992), which argued that general or transferable
skills training and education can improve an unemployed person's productivity and
expected earnings (but are unlikely to be paid for by firms as property rights of
increased potential remain with the worker). Employability is, however, a broader
concept. Improvements in employability not only increase the person's human capital,
but also are likely to increase the chances of getting an opportunity to utilise this
capital through better job search and deployment of the `employability assets'.
To some extent the roots of the concept of employability can also be traced to the more
recent processes of international labour-market deregulation and large-scale industrial
restructuring, which have required the adoption of new forms of working and the estab-
lishment of new kinds of relationships between employer and workforce. Employability
became a popular concept in corporate human-resource-management thinking during the
recession of the early 1990s (during which time employers were more often able to offer
enhanced employability, rather than employment security, to members of their workforce).
However, even prior to those recessionary times, employers had begun to advocate new
forms of working relationship that more closely reflected a more flexible and competitive
616 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

labour market. In the face of increased job insecurity and narrowing promotion prospects,
many firms began to encourage their employees to take `ownership' of their personal
career development, whilst offering them opportunities to improve their employability,
through the development of transferable skills that might facilitate their movement
between positions in the wider labour market (Hillage and Pollard, 1998).
More recent human-resource-management literature has continued to use employ-
ability as an important explanatory and descriptive concept. For theorists in this field,
the `psychological contract' that increasingly defines relations between many employers
and employees is partially based on the concept of employability (Herriot and Pemberton,
1995; 1997). From this perspective, employer ^ employee relations are no longer seen as
being based on the traditional model of reciprocal loyalty, but rather involve a form of
personal, psychological contract from which the individual also seeks: a sense of balance
between personal time and work; a form of work organisation that allows the autonomy
to concentrate on specifically defined objectives; and personal development made possible
through continuous learning that adds to individual employability.
Bagshaw (1997, page 187) sums up the rise of employability within this context as
``the new form of job security'', given the manner in which it involves employers provid-
ing the opportunity for ``self-development for vulnerable employees (ie all employees)''.
Similarly, Van den Toran (1999) suggests that the increasing importance of the concept
of employability in workplace relations reflects the fundamental individualisation of
employment conditionsa process that has seen lifetime job security replaced by
`work security'. From a business perspective, the promotion of employability both within
and beyond the organisation has therefore become viewed increasingly as the key to
developing a ``flexible and adaptable'' workforce (CBI, 1999, page 2). Although this has
led to more flexible working practices and a renewed commitment to training within
some organisations, it has also been argued that the prioritisation of employability by
many employers merely reflects an attempt to secure employee commitment in the face
of uncertain contractual conditions, rather than a genuine interest in addressing skills
levels (Hallier and Butts, 1999).
From these well-established corporate roots, the concept of employability has more
recently grown increasingly popular amongst policymakers and service providers deal-
ing with the unemployed. Within this context, the drive for employability is more than
a means of offering workers the opportunity to develop flexible skills as an alternative
to security of tenure. Rather, the development of individuals' employability is viewed as
a crucial step towards improving access to employment (particularly for disadvantaged
groups), and is therefore a necessary element within strategies seeking to address
unemployment and social exclusion.
Some theorists continue to view the rise of the concept of employability with
great suspicion. For Serrano (2001), employability evokes a `traditional', reactionary
understanding of unemployment, which seeks to blame the jobless individual's predic-
ament upon his or her inadequacies, rather than on a lack of opportunity within the
labour market. The logical conclusion of such an approach, it is argued, is a US-style
workfare-dominated policy agenda. However, the rhetoric of the British government,
consistent with the lead from the European Commission, clearly presents a more
positive perspective, focusing upon `inclusion', with employability viewed as the key
to a cohesive society (DfEE, 2000).
Furthermore, many of the policy analysts who have sought to use the concept as a
means of categorising individual barriers to work have themselves stressed the need to
avoid an approach that involves `blaming the victim', or policies that offer solely
supply-side solutions (Evans et al, 1999; Kleinman et al, 1998). Kleinman and West
(1998) accept that attempts to address employability with reference to supply-side
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 617

measures alone risk being swamped by rising levels of general unemployment in times
of economic recession. Similarly, a purely supply-side focus fails to acknowledge the
impact of employers' recruitment practices and the nature of contracts and conditions
on the ability of job seekers to pursue certain opportunities (Atkinson et al, 1996;
Tamkin and Hillage, 1999). Employability, it is argued, should and must be understood
as being derived from, and affected by, individual characteristics and circumstances
and broader, external (social, institutional, and economic) factors. In the next section
we consider the development of an operational definition of employability.

3 Defining employability
Recent efforts to arrive at a clearer definition of the concept of employability have
emphasised the need to understand the interaction of individual and external factors
affecting the individual's ability to operate effectively within the labour market. To this
end, Evans et al (1999) suggest a division of employability into supply-side and
demand-side elements (described as `employability components' and `external factors').
Similarly, Kleinman et al (1998) discuss a range of `micro' and `macro' factors that
define the detail on each side of this equation:
(a) microlevel, demand-side factors include the number of entry-level positions avail-
able within the local economy, and the nature of employers' recruitment procedures
(both formal and informal);
(b) macrolevel, demand-side factors include the extent and nature of labour demand
within the wider economy, the macroeconomic policies of government, and the general
degree of business confidence;
(c) microlevel, supply-side factors include personal and social skills, job-specific skills
and qualifications, and core skills (such as numeracy and literacy);
(d) macrolevel supply-side factors include the availability and accessibility of transport
and child-care provision, and the incidence of area-based, ageist, racist, and other
forms of discrimination.
However, as policymakers have sought to develop increasingly holistic and client-
centred programmes for the long-term unemployed, researchers have sought a similarly
thorough understanding of their particular barriers to work, and the interaction
between the components of employability. Moss and Tilly (1995) have emphasised the
need to distinguish between `soft' and `hard' skills when discussing the personal assets
of job seekers. The distinction is all the more necessary, they argue, because hard skills,
ranging from basic literacy to job-specific, technical skills, are less important to many
recruiting employers (and particularly those seeking staff for entry-level positions) than
are so-called soft skills (such as interpersonal and communication skills, motivation,
enthusiasm, and reliability). Moss and Tilly's US-based research has been supported on
this point by Atkinson et al (1996).
In an attempt to arrive at a definition of employability that would provide a
framework for policy analysis, and a means of understanding the complexities of the
barriers to work faced by individuals, Hillage and Pollard (1998) have drawn upon
many themes from the existing literature. Their framework for employability seeks to
highlight the full range of skills that affect the ability of individuals to secure and
retain employment. They also draw attention to the importance of strategic skills whilst
seeking work and the presentational skills that enable job seekers to convince recruiters
of their abilities. Finally, they concur with the view that demand-side factors and
personal, familial, and social circumstances can be as important as individual charac-
teristics in contributing to the employability of job seekers. It should be noted
that, although this is a useful framework for categorising employability, it does not
constitute a fully coherent theoretical model.
618 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

Thus, for Hillage and Pollard, employability can be understood as being the result
of a complex interaction of different components, namely:
(1) employability assets: including baseline assets, such as basic skills and essential
personal attributes (for example, reliability and honesty); intermediate assets, such
as job-specific, generic, and `key' skills (for example, communication and problem
solving); and high-level assets, such as those skills that contribute to organisational
performance (for example, team work and commercial awareness);
(2) presentation: defined as the ability to secure an appointment to an appropriate
position through the demonstration of employability assets, that is, by presenting
them within the labour market in an accessible way (for example, through the com-
petent completion of a CV or application form, or participation in an interview);
(3) deployment: referring to a range of abilities including career-management skills (for
example, awareness of one's own abilities and limitations, awareness of opportunities
in the labour market, and decisionmaking and transitional skills); job-search skills; and
strategic skills (including a realistic approach to the pursuit of job opportunities);
and (4) context factors, or the interaction of personal circumstances and the labour
market: referring to the individual's ability to realise the assets and skills discussed
above which will to some extent depend upon external socioeconomic factors, personal
circumstances, and the relationship between the two. External conditions such as local
labour-market demand and employer attitudes will impact upon the availability of
suitable opportunities, whereas personal circumstances, such as caring responsibilities,
physical health, and household status will affect the ability of individuals to seek and
benefit from opportunities.
Although labour-market conditions are mentioned as a context factor within the
Hillage ^ Pollard framework, the framework is arguably limited in its ability to place
employability in context at the local level. Localised changes in patterns of demand (by
occupation or employment status) can have a crucial impact on employers' labour and
skills needs, and so on the opportunities available to certain job seekers (Campbell
et al, 1998). Locally accepted recruitment procedures also have the potential to con-
tribute to the exclusion of some groups, where employers recruit and unemployed
people look for work using different `search channels' (Campbell, 2000; Campbell
and Meadows, 2001; Walwei, 1998). Furthermore, the social and economic geography
of local labour markets can particularly impact upon the ability of individuals to
access informal social networks, which has been shown to be a significant determinant
of job-search success (Hannan, 1999; Lindeboom et al, 1994).
Nevertheless, the broad-ranging employability framework offered by Hillage and
Pollard provides a useful starting point, particularly for any discussion of the barriers
to work faced by long-term unemployed job seekers given a specific set of local
economic conditionsin this case a buoyant, high-demand, urban labour market. In
this study, interviews were carried out with a random sample of 115 job seekers who
had been unemployed for one year or more, and who were resident in peripheral areas
of the city characterised by above-average unemployment rates. Interviews were under-
taken both with the registered unemployed, who were claiming Job Seeker's Allowance
(approximately 80% of the total sample), and with the nonclaimant, unregistered
jobless, whom nonetheless described themselves as having been unemployed and
actively seeking work for one year or more.(2) Respondents were questioned about their

(2) Note that the definition of long-term unemployment used is that favoured by the International

Labour Organisation (wanting to work but unemployed for 12 months or more) rather than the
Employment Service and claimant count definition of long-term unemployment (unemployed and
actively seeking work for 6 months or more).
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 619

household and family circumstances, educational and skills attainment, experience

of the labour market, job-search strategies, and perceived barriers to work. The
Hillage ^ Pollard employability framework is used to identify a number of gaps in the
`employability assets' of the long-term unemployed, their presentation and deployment
of those assets, and a range of personal and circumstantial barriers to work.

4 Findings: employability, barriers to work, and the long-term unemployed

4.1 The long-term unemployed and `employability assets'
The lack of basic skills, qualifications, and recent work experience are often seen
as the major barriers faced by long-term unemployed people. Approximately 60% of
the sample possessed no formal academic qualifications, and more than 60% held no
vocational qualifications. In total, over 45% possessed no qualifications of any (even
the most basic) kind, compared with 17% within the general labour force in Scotland
(Scottish Office, 1998). Whereas more than half (53%) of the Scottish labour force are
educated to SCE Higher Grade level or above, only around 29% of the long-term
unemployed had a similar level of qualification. However, almost 10% were graduates
or equivalent (see figure 1).(3)
The broader skills possessed by many long-term unemployed people were often
similarly limited. When asked to describe their most regular occupation, well over
half of the respondents (58%) cited unskilled jobs, or had no previous occupation.
Other generic or `soft' skills and key personal attributes are more difficult to assess
through survey-based research, although the vast majority of respondents considered
themselves to be reliable (78%) and motivated (72%) in their approach to work. Only
6% and 5%, respectively, considered their attributes in these areas to be inadequate.
Clearly, it would be necessary to establish recruiters' perceptions of the `soft skills' of
long-term unemployed candidates in order to draw firmer conclusions about their real
and perceived attainment in this area.
In general terms, the low level of formal skills and educational attainment of the
sample places them at a distinct immediate disadvantage when competing within
the wider labour market. Those with few qualifications will also struggle in the longer
No qualifications
50
40

30

20
Degree or equivalent Standard grade 1 7 or equivalent
10

0 Study sample

Working-age population
(Scotland)

Higher education qualification Higher grade or equivalent

Figure 1. Respondents' levels of qualification compared with the working-age population in

Scotland (%).

(3)
`No qualifications' includes those naming vocational qualifications not recognised in the Labour
Force Survey. `Standard grade 1 ^ 7 or equivalent' includes GSVQ, RSA diploma level, and
SVQ 1 ^ 2. `Higher grade or equivalent' includes GSVQ advanced, RSA advanced diploma,
and SVQ level 3. `Higher Education qualification' includes HND, HNC, SVQ 4, and professional
qualifications.
620 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

term to `move up the jobs ladder' towards more stable, better paid employment
(Robinson, 1997). This, combined with evidence that low-skilled workers can have
problems in adapting to new job roles (Groot and Van den Brink, 2000), highlights
the impact of the skills gaps experienced by long-term unemployed people upon their
overall employability.
It is perhaps even more important that, by definition, long-term unemployed
people have significant gaps in their work records. More than 70% of the sample group
had been out of work for over two years, with almost 30% unemployed for more than
five years. Many employers, particularly those recruiting to relatively low-skilled and
entry-level positions, value recent and relevant work experience above all other key
attributes (Brown et al, 2001; Manning, 2000). The inability of the long-term unem-
ployed to provide evidence of such experience therefore represents a major barrier to
work that must be addressed by any effective labour-market policy (Finn et al, 1998;
Hasluck, 1998).
4.2 The presentation and deployment of employability assets
The second component of employability involves the presentation of personal employ-
ability assets (for example, through the competent completion of application forms,
and effective performance at interview). The vast majority of respondents perceived
their presentation skills to be at least adequate, although their actual level of such
skills is difficult to measure. We are, however, better able to evaluate the `deployment'
of employability assets. Respondents within the sample were asked about how they
looked for work, their job-search targets, and their more general perceptions of the
labour market. The data gathered, and presented below, provide an insight into
the pragmatismor otherwiseof job seekers' search strategies, their understand-
ing of their abilities and limitations, and their `strategic awareness' with regards to
employment opportunities.
To some extent the respondents displayed a flexible approach to looking for work.
Indeed, there was little evidence of the `psychological insularity' and social isolation
which, it has been argued, often prevents the long-term unemployed from travelling
from economically depressed areas (where unemployment tends to be concentrated) to
areas of higher levels of labour demand. Approximately 40% of our respondents were
willing to spend more than one hour on a daily basis travelling to a full-time job, with
over 80% willing to travel for at least thirty minutes (see table 1). Less than 5% would
accept work only within fifteen minutes of their home, and a similarly small propor-
tion restricted their job search in geographical terms to their `immediate locality only'.
In reality, for many respondents, the opportunities to travel long distances in order
to pursue and undertake work are strictly limited. The vast majority of respondents
(84%) did not have access to private transport and, when faced with the predictable
difficulties associated with the cost, time, and effort involved in commuting substantial
distances on a daily basis, it can be argued that many respondents would be reluctant
to take up opportunities far from their homes. However, there is no reason to suggest
that these findings do not reflect a genuine willingness amongst job seekers to pursue
opportunities beyond their immediate area of residence. Such a conclusion contradicts
the popular image of an intransigent and immobile long-term-unemployed population,
and questions the validity of theories seeking to explain long-term unemployment by
propounding the existence of a ghettoised underclass suffering from a sense of psycho-
logical insularity. [These findings support the conclusions of McGregor et al (1998)
regarding attitudes towards travel in areas of above-average unemployment.] Clearly,
in less urbanised areas transport availability may remain a significant practical barrier
to work (Cartmel and Furlong, 2000; McQuaid et al, 2001; Monk et al, 1999).
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 621

Table 1. Daily travelling time to work considered acceptable by respondents.

Acceptable travelling time each way Percentage of respondents

(minutes)

5 15 4
15 30 16
30 45 20
45 60 20
5 60 40
Total (N 115) 100

However, although few amongst the sample of long-term unemployed people

restricted their job-seeking activities on the grounds of geography, there is evidence
to suggest that their search for work might be too narrowly focused according to job
type. Many respondents were keen to return to their former occupations, but others
wished to enter more stable and better paid employment. Over half of respondents
described their most regular former occupation as unskilled or low skilled, but only
35% named such occupations as among their primary job-search targets. Some 29% of
previously low-skilled and unskilled job seekers were looking for semiskilled, skilled,
or professional jobs, despite their lack of any recent job experience (table 2). Conversely,
only a fifth of previously semiskilled or skilled workers were willing to accept lower
skilled positions (14%) or `anything' (8%). However, over two thirds of managers would
accept a skilled or semiskilled job and only 29% mainly targeted managerial jobs.
These findings are of considerable interest. The tendency of higher waged workers
to restrict their job search to familiar occupations and sectors of the economy is well
documented, although there is evidence to suggest that selective search strategies have
a limited impact on unemployment duration for this group (Thomas, 1998). In more
general terms the tendency of many unemployed people to target jobs that they have
some past knowledge of has also been noted (House of Commons Education and
Employment Committee, 2000). However, it is more surprising to find that over a
quarter of former low-waged, lower skilled or unskilled workers who currently were
experiencing long-term unemployment were relatively selective in targeting higher level
jobs. It might be argued that, given the labour-market context described above and the
personal characteristics of the client group, such an approach is rather more likely to
result in their continued unemployment.
It would appear that, rather than lowering their expectations in response to lengthy
periods of unemployment, a significant minority of lower skilled or unskilled workers
have become more selective in the manner in which they target job opportunities.

Table 2. Occupational preference or main job search target (as a percentage of total responses
within each former-occupation category).

Former occupation Occupational preference or main job-search target (%)

of respondent
lower skilled/ skilled/ managerial/ none/
unskilled semiskilled professional `anything'

Previously lower skilled/unskilled 54 27 2 17

Previously skilled/semiskilled 14 78 0 8
Previously managerial/professional 0 71 29 0
Percentage of all responses 35 49 4 12
622 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

There is evidence to suggest that the reasons for this selective approach to job seeking
are varied, but may include: changes in the nature of lower skilled employment and
(particularly male) job seekers' negative attitudes to service work; an interest in gaining
higher rates of pay in order to replace fully the support provided by passported
benefits (for example, housing and council tax benefits, which are linked to the receipt
of income-based benefits); the desire to find more stable employment in order to guard
against a prompt return to unemployment; and a lack of awareness of the value of
recent and relevant work experience in the eyes of recruiters.
Certainly, the increasingly dominant role played by the service sector in providing
unskilled work within city-based labour markets may account for the reluctance of
some long-term job seekers to pursue lower skilled jobs. Less than 13% of our respond-
ents cited service jobs in tourism, leisure, domestic, or protective services as their
primary job-search target, and only 7% were targeting retail posts. Recent evidence
suggests that many (particularly male) job seekers tend to view service work as offering
only low-paid, low-quality job opportunities (House of Commons Education and
Employment Committee, 2000; Lloyd, 1999). There is also some evidence indicating
that males formerly employed in traditional occupations or sectors of the economy tend
to be reluctant to pursue new opportunities in technology or service-based positions.
The conclusion that long-term unemployed people tend to be selective regarding
the sectors and occupations included within their job search is further supported by
interviewees' responses when asked to evaluate the relevance of a range of potential
`external' barriers to work in explaining their continued unemployment. Over half of
respondents identified a lack of appropriate opportunities and a lack of sufficiently
well-paid opportunities as important barriers. Although employer discrimination
against the unemployed (67%) and older workers (55%) were also popular explana-
tions, a lack of opportunity (54%) was mentioned far more frequently than, for
example, gaps in the provision of information and services for job seekers (see table 3).
The local labour market within which these job seekers were searching was charac-
terised by generally high levels of demand, and particular shortages of unskilled
labour in service positions. Interviews were carried out in peripheral areas of the city
characterised by higher than usual unemployment and long-term unemployment, but
job seekers described their own search area as encompassing locations outside their
immediate localityand therefore areas where labour demand was much stronger (see
above). In these circumstances, the identification of a `lack of opportunities' as an
important barrier to work by respondents would seem to support the contention
that many of the long-term unemployed restrict their job search to economic sectors
and occupations of low demand, even though the local economy is buoyant overall and
there is a demand for low-skilled workers.
A second factor explaining the selective job-search strategies deployed by many
respondents may lie in their shared interest in gaining stable employment at a salary
level fully replacing the financial support provided by welfare benefits. Although many
Table 3. External factors identified as barriers to work by respondents.

Potential barrier Percentage of respondents

Employer discrimination against the unemployed 67

Lack of sufficiently well-paid opportunities 56
Employer discrimination against older workers 55
Lack of appropriate opportunities 54
Lack of access to information about jobs 29
Lack of adequate assistance from intermediaries 13
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 623

respondents had very modest wage aspirations, the majority (56%) would not accept
full-time employment paid at less than 175 per week after deductions. Although not
particularly high, this minimum acceptable wage does exclude a number of entry-level,
lower skilled positions that might otherwise be accessible to the long-term unemployed,
again indicating the importance of the local context in explaining the `employability gap'.
The exclusion of lower-paid opportunities from the job-search strategies of the
respondents is best explained with reference to job seekers' clearly expressed concerns
about the financial consequences of the transition from welfare to work. When asked to
judge whether certain potential personal and circumstantial barriers were of relevance
in explaining their continued unemployment, the majority of respondents (55%) iden-
tified `problems associated with losing benefits' as a barrier to work. More general
concerns about `costs related to starting work' were cited by 46% of respondents (see
table 4).
Table 4. Personal or circumstantial barriers to work identified by respondents.

Potential barrier Percentage of respondents

Problems associated with losing benefits 55

Costs related to starting work 46
Lack of access to private transport 44
Costs related to looking for work 27
Health problems 25
Lack of access to or cost of public transport 22
Lack of access to childcare 12

This evidence supports the view that the marginal costs associated with starting
work are a major barrier to job entry for the long-term unemployed (see, for example,
Finn et al, 1998). Although the UK government has recently introduced a number of
reforms to the tax and benefit system designed to remove so-called `benefit traps', there
apparently remains a perception amongst many job seekers that low-paid work
will leave them worse off. Furthermore, certain inflexible elements within the social-
security system, like the waiting times required prior to the payment of `passported'
allowances, clearly continue to cause concern amongst those considering a return to
work. Indeed, the loss of these benefits would in itself appear to be a matter of
particular concern for the long-term unemployed, many of whom believed that low-
paid work would not provide sufficient resources to deal with housing and other costs.
Given these circumstances it is perhaps unsurprising to find that many long-term
unemployed people continued to target opportunities in sectors and occupations
where they had previously found steady employment, or to seek more stable and
better paid work within higher skilled occupations. Employment that is unstable
and low paid may be viewed as too great a risk by benefit recipients who fear a
prompt return to unemployment or `in work' poverty, particularly as they are likely
to have no or only limited savings to `buffer' any gaps in income. Many welfare
benefits are normally lost whenever a person gains work and if they lose their new
job they must then reapply, but may not have their former benefits reinstated. So
policies to guarantee short-term or medium-term protection of these benefits may
help encourage people to `risk' taking a new job.
A final element explaining the selective job-search strategies deployed by many
long-term unemployed people rests with their perceptions of their own skills and
experience. As reported above, the vast majority of job seekers considered their
so-called `soft skills' (such as motivation and presentation skills) to be adequate or good.
624 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

More surprisingly, similar expressions of confidence characterised job seekers' evaluations

of their attainment in areas such as academic qualifications and work experience.
When asked to evaluate their own skills, qualifications and experience, over 60% of
respondents described both their work-based skills and formal qualifications as
adequate or good (even though, as reported above, more than 60% held no academic
qualifications). However, it is perhaps of greater importance that almost two thirds of
our respondents considered themselves to have a good work record, with 86% in total
describing their work experience as adequate or good. By definition, all the members
of our sample had not worked in the previous year, and the average duration of their
unemployment was very much longer. Given the importance placed upon recent and
relevant experience by employers (and particularly those recruiting to lower skilled
positions), the weak recent-work record held by the long-term unemployed is a cru-
cialbut apparently relatively unacknowledged barrier to work.
4.3 Long-term unemployment, employability, and `context factors'
As the above discussion demonstrates, there is a need to distinguish between the
external barriers to work (or `context factors') affecting the employability of job seekers,
and job seekers' perceptions of those barriers. An objective appraisal of labour-market
conditions in the study area might conclude that the simple lack of demand identified
by respondents was not in reality a significant barrier to work. Rather, the skills and
experience of job seekers (`employability assets') and their targeting of jobs (`deploy-
ment') resulted in the perception that few opportunities were available. At the same
time, other context factors, such as inflexible and disincentivising elements within the
benefits system, also contributed to the restrictive job-search strategies adopted by
some long-term unemployed people.
Interviewees were asked to consider whether a further range of other potential
external and circumstantial barriers had limited their ability to seek or accept employ-
ment. As reported above, employer discrimination against the long-term unemployed
in general and (to a lesser extent) older job seekers was identified as an important
external barrier faced by job seekers, along with the perceived lack of job opportunities
within the local labour market (table 3). Problems in accessing transport and childcare
also emerged as potentially important issues. Some 44% of respondents considered a
lack of access to private transport to be a significant barrier to work. Given the
importance placed upon car ownership by smaller employers in some sectors (most
significantly construction and distribution), access to transport is often a crucial issue
for long-term unemployed people seeking work in these specific occupational areas.
Relatively few respondents stressed family responsibilities or problems in accessing
childcare as significant personal barriers to work (12%). However, for those who
did have caring responsibilities for children (22% of the total sample) the cost and
availability of childcare were a concern, and were identified as a barrier to work
by over half of these respondents. It is also notable that these concerns were signifi-
cantly greater amongst female respondents, with 52% of females citing both their
own primary caring role and childcare problems as representing important barriers
to work.
Finally, it is notable that 25% of respondents cited some form of health problem
though often fairly minor in natureas a barrier to work. Only 9% of respondents
reported themselves as suffering from a `chronic or long-term illness' or `considered
themselves to be disabled' (2% were registered as disabled). Although all of our
respondents had been declared `fit to work' by the Benefits Agency, it is clear that
the health problems experienced by more than a quarter will to some extent limit the
range and depth of their job search.
Long-term unemployment in buoyant labour markets 625

5 Discussion and conclusions

The above analysis suggests that there remains a strong case for measures that address
the individual aspects of the `employability gap' experienced by long-term unemployed
job seekers. The majority of respondents were low skilled, possessed few or no quali-
fications, and had been excluded from the active labour market for a number of years.
These findings are consistent with previous research into the barriers to work faced by
the long-term unemployed (see, for example, Hasluck et al, 1997; Payne et al, 1996).
They further confirm the conclusions of research undertaken with the clients and
employers involved in the New Deal (Hales et al, 2000; Hasluck, 2000; Legard et al,
2000; Tavistock Institute, 1999).
The findings also highlight the importance of the manner in which personal
assets are deployed within buoyant labour markets, and the particular significance
of the strategic awareness and job-seeking skills of unemployed people. More specifi-
cally, many long-term unemployed people demonstrated a lack of awareness of `new',
service-based opportunities within the labour market, and a reluctance to seek
work outside traditional job roles. This view, when combined with concerns over
the instability and low disposable income provided by certain occupations, resulted
in the adoption of selective job-search strategies that excluded a range of entry-level
positions which would otherwise be relatively obtainable (particularly within high-
demand, service-oriented labour markets where job-specific skills are relatively
less important). Even in the context of a local economy characterised by low unemploy-
ment and generally high labour demand, the selectivity that characterised the
job-search strategies employed by many of the respondents may act as a significant
(and previously little acknowledged) barrier to work.
The research would therefore seem to support the emphasis of government pro-
grammes on providing the long-term unemployed with intensive training, counselling,
and job-search assistance. However, given the importance of recent experience to
recruiting employers, and the poor work records of many long-term unemployed
people, a stronger emphasis on training within a supportive, real work environment
is required. Intermediate labour-market initiatives and other innovative `real work'
schemes have been introduced within some New Deal partnership areas, but the
generally low uptake of the employment-subsidy option suggests that this potentially
vital (but expensive) approach to personal development remains largely neglected
within the national programme.
Similarly, although the counselling and support provided by the New Deal may
encourage participants to expand their job search to previously neglected areas of the
labour market characterised by higher demand, issues related to the pay and conditions
offered by employers and inflexible elements within the benefits system must also be
addressed. In particular, the financial consequences of the withdrawal of housing-
related benefits, and concerns over bureaucratic delays should these benefits need to
be reclaimed, emerged as important factors explaining the reluctance of long-term
unemployed people to `take risks' in the labour market (see also DfES, 2001; Finn
et al, 1998; Hasluck et al, 1997). Some steps have been taken to ease the transition from
welfare to work for the long-term unemployed, including the continued payment of
housing benefits for four weeks after the start of employment, but further assistance
may be required to encourage the adoption of a more flexible approach to job seeking in
the `new economy' (House of Commons Education and Employment Committee, 2000).
In more general terms, applying the Hillage ^ Pollard employability framework to
the responses gathered from job seekers has highlighted the complex and multidimen-
sional nature of the barriers to work faced by the long-term unemployed, in relation
to their `employability assets', the presentation and deployment of those assets, and
626 R W McQuaid, C Lindsay

broader context factors. By adopting employability as the key goal for labour-market
strategies, rather than focusing solely upon the `skills gap' or the `jobs gap' in the local
economy, policymakers can begin to arrive at the multidimensional responses required
to deal with the combination of personal and circumstantial problems experienced by
many long-term unemployed people.
However, policies must genuinely reflect the balance of individual and context
factors affecting employability. In buoyant labour markets, such as the one discussed
in this paper, the personal characteristics of many individuals, and their awareness of
job opportunities and the priorities of employers, will decisively impact upon their
ability to find work. In those areas where demand deficiency is a problem, a lack
of opportunity will continue to limit the employability of local residents, whatever
measures are taken to improve individuals' employability assets and their presentation
and deployment. It would appear that the government has begun to accept that the
geography of local labour markets (and particularly the problem of localised demand
deficiencies) will have a significant impact on the employability of individual job
seekers.(4) Yet labour-market policies remain dominated by supply-side initiatives. A
balanced approach combining efforts to stimulate local labour demand (where
required) with client-centred training and support is essential if welfare to work is to
provide a gateway to sustainable job opportunities for the long-term unemployed.
Finally, from a more theoretical perspective, the rise of the concept of employ-
ability reflects the need to capture the complex interaction of different barriers to
work faced by unemployed job seekers. It suggests the need to move beyond basic
human-capital models which focus primarily upon a narrowly defined set of skills and
qualifications. Nor is it sufficient for models of employability merely to take into
account the wider range of `soft' skills and strategic awareness that are increasingly
required by individual job seekers. Rather, local economic circumstances and the
attitudes and actions of employers must be integrated within any thorough employ-
ability framework. Only by transcending traditional supply-side and demand-side
orthodoxies within a fully developed concept of employability can we arrive at an
understanding of the employability gap experienced by unemployed people, and so
inform the development of appropriate, locally relevant policy responses.
Acknowledgements. The authors would like to thank an anonymous referee for his or her very
helpful comments, and the City of Edinburgh Council for financial support. All errors remain
those of the authors.
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