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Course
Description
The course was designed to address several broad areas
of policy concern in the labor market: unemployment
and under-employment, labor misallocation, low levels
of skills development, and inadequate and exclusionary
social protection. It comprised nine inter-related
and complementary modules, as well as parallel expert
sessions on selected topics, and participant presentations
on incorporating labor market issues in country poverty
reduction strategies.
- Module
1: Setting the Scene: Global and Regional Labor
Market Trends - gave an overview of key
labor market trends and issues worldwide and introduced
a number of cross-cutting themes such as the informal
sector, gender issues, vulnerable groups and the
macro economic environment.
- Module
2: Active Labor Market Policies - examined
the different types of active labor market policies
such as retraining, job search/matching, and direct
employment creation, as well as the performance
evaluation of such policies.
- Module
3: Passive Labor Market Policies - gave
an overview of passive labor market policies such
as income support and unemployment benefit schemes.
It included a number of country case studies, a.o.
some presented by participants themselves.
- Module
4: Downsizing and Privatization - reviewed
alternative policies to deal with labor adjustment
issues associated with privatization, restructuring
of state-owned enterprises and downsizing. It presented
a hands-on toolkit for downsizing simulations allowing
participants to analyze the costs and benefits of
downsizing operations.
- Module
5: Human Capital, Skills Development and Training
Policies - examined issues of human capital
and economic growth, the training market, skills
development and its consequences for earnings and
productivity, and alternate policies for financing
and delivering training to formal and informal labor
markets.
- Module
6: The Informal Sector - reviewed the
characteristics of the informal sector and examined
its implications for policy making, including how
the informal sector affects social protection, vulnerable
groups, and labor market reform.
- Module
7: Engendering Development - examined
the gender dimensions of the labor market and asked
why gender matters. It covered different approaches
to promoting more equitable and efficient labor
markets and reported new research on the relationship
between gender, program design, and economic growth.
- Module
8: Labor Market Regulations, Core Labor Standards
and Labor Unions - gave an overview of
different modes of labor market regulation, and
their likely impacts on the labor market. It discussed
the roles of core labor standards and trade unions
in the labor market and in the globalization process.
- Module
9: Child Labor - reviewed trends and
data on child labor, discussed measurement issues
and offered the main lessons learned from research
and evaluation.
The
course incorporated formal presentations as well as
practical case studies and hands-on exercises enabling
participants to apply what they had learned to concrete
situations. The course was taught by a wide array
of experts from the World Bank, top academic and research
institutions, and other leading agencies.
Target Audience
This course was designed for operational staff from
the World Bank and from bilateral and multilateral
donor agencies as well as senior policymakers, technical
staff of government agencies, researchers from academic
organizations, training institutions, trade unions,
employer groups and NGOs involved with labor issues
in client countries. The content of the course was
of interest not only to Labor Ministries but also
to those with responsibilities for economic policy,
industry and education. We encouraged participation
of staff from these agencies.
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