This study examines the employment experiences of migrants from Central and Eastern Europe countries who are working within Northern Ireland's food processing industry. The research is set within the framework of precarious work, and compares the experiences of migrants who are engaged in agency working, with those who are employed on permanent contracts.

This study investigates the phenomenon of overeducation among 19 highly-skilled migrant workers from EU countries working in jobs in the UK which are not commensurate with their qualifications and experience. Building on recent qualitative studies of the lived experiences of both self-initiated expatriates and migrant workers, the thesis aims, through in-depth qualitative interviews, to interpret, evaluate and refine our understanding of the experiences of highly skilled migrants in the UK in jobs which do not make use of their qualifications and experience. The study sheds light on the experiences of a growing group of internationally mobile EU citizens, who, rather than undertake the one-off movements typically studied in the migration literature, are able, as a result of the freedom of movement which they enjoy as EU citizens, to undertake more fluid mobility between EU nation states. By so doing it addresses the need for a better understanding of contemporary career mobility within the EU which is vital if the community s ideals of a more mobile, skilled and adaptable workforce, able to increase the community s competitive ability in the face of growing globalisation, are to be realised. Incorporating insights from the literature of migration, expatriation, careers and underemployment, the study seeks to gain an understanding of the migrant workers reasons for coming; the barriers they face in their search for employment which is commensurate with their qualifications and experience; their adjustment to their new work, cultural and social environments; and the effect that their stay here has on their sense of identity. The study suggests that the migrants inability to find work commensurate with their skills and experience could have adverse effects on their mental health and may detract from their ability to integrate fully into wider UK society. By restricting its focus to individuals in jobs which are not commensurate with their qualifications and experience, the study helps to add to the relatively small body of knowledge on individuals in skill- and status- underemployment undergoing voluntary (i.e. unforced) downward transitions. The reality of the interviewees situation was very often at odds with their preconceptions. The study has examined the way in which they faced up to the multiple demands of their new environment. It is hoped that it will encourage further research to address these issues and by so doing benefit future generations of EU migrant workers.

Domestic work in private households is, together with prostitution, the most significant employer of newly arrived female migrants. This thesis examines the phenomenon of the racialisation of paid domestic labour in the European Union, and begins to outline the challenges this poses to feminism, political theory and community organisations. At an empirical level it begins to map the employment of migrant women in domestic work in Europe, to describe the work they perform, their living and working conditions and their employment relations. At a theoretical level it is necessarily concerned with the inadequacy of conceptual tools designed to describe more "traditional" forms of employment (i.e. traditionally of concern to white male sociologists) or to describe the experience of "women" within the domestic sphere (i.e. the experience of white middle class women). The paid domestic worker, even when she does the same task as the wife/daughter/mother, is differently constructed, for she is expressing and reproducing the female employer's status by serving as her "foil". I argue that it is the worker's "personhood" rather than their labour power, which the employer is attempting to "buy". As well as labour cost and supply, racist stereotypes and the reproduction of such stereotypes are important in determining demand for domestic workers, and this results in a racist hierarchy which constructs some women as being particularly "suitable" for domestic work. Migrant domestic workers' relation to the state encourages and reinforces the racialisation of domestic work and personal dependence on employers. While the applying of employment contracts to domestic workers may seem to offer some way forward there are many difficulties associated with applying employment contracts to the private domain, both theoretically and in workers' real experiences.

No description available.

This research tested the effectiveness of two Interventions employed to assist 33 first time job seekers with mild and moderate learning disabilities to increase the extent of self-determination in the vocational choices they make during the job selection component of the supported employment model. A job taster programme was set up in two South Wales supported employment agencies. During the Baseline the job coaches were provided with no specific instructions. Intervention I comprised a one-day training package to teach job coaches the principles of self-determination; to implement a self-instructional approach; and to encourage them to use structured job reviews following each job taster session. At this stage a written questionnaire was introduced and was formatted so as to enable job seekers to make informed decisions without the need of continued assistance from the job coaches. Intervention 2 comprised the introduction of a pictorial job review profile aimed at further increasing job seeker independence in the review procedure. Results from direct observations and job seeker self-report, suggested that job seeker self-determination was enhanced through the project, indicated by a high degree of job seeker accuracy in reporting factual aspects of their experiences accompanied by a drop in the rate of job coach assistance.

Following the expansion of the European Union (EU) in 2004 with the accession of the A8 countries namely, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic and Estonia, the United Kingdom (UK) experienced an influx of nationals from these countries. This was down to two main factors, firstly the UK was one of only three EU nations, alongside Sweden and Republic of Ireland, to place no restrictions on the right of these individuals to travel and secondly, they were given the right to join the labour market and seek work. This study used both quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate the impact these arriving A8 migrant workers had on those organisations with the manufacturing industry in Northern Ireland who employed them. An initial phase of quantitative data collection was utilised to create a research framework, that was then used to select those organisations and individuals who participated in the qualitative phase(s). It considers management and organisational issues by considering the literature on the use of human resources giving competitive advantage (SHRM) and the key aspects of diversity and equality including sameness/difference, the business, social justice and legal cases for diversity management. Results showed that issues such as language are key in aiding inclusion and reducing friction in the workplace, indigenous workers can feel threatened when migrants speak in the native language and conversely on many occasions, migrant workers do not have the required language skills to communicate confidently without an interpreter. This lead to the evolvement of ‘informal leaders’, those migrant workers who, found themselves acting as spokesperson for their colleagues and used as interpreters and or a negotiator. In conclusion, an employer typology is developed that visualises the behaviour and outlook of organisations in relation to the key aspects of diversity as previously mentioned.

The present analysis sets out to analyse the current situation of active labour market policies addressing disabled people. Methodologically, the thesis is a mixed-method, comparative social policy research study. With its layered analysis, it aims to identify how states can better promote the employment of disabled people in the open labour market. Initially, the factors behind better employment outcomes were investigated. This was, later, followed by investigation of individual level interpretations and experiences in the face of ALMPs addressing disabled people. The results of the present thesis indicate that centralisation of assessment structures, timely vocational rehabilitation; availability of flexible working options and access to education; built environment and transport systems have potential to promote employment of disabled people after controlling for the factors. Prolonged and strong support system and access to training opportunities may also contribute. Still, any governance style that harms ‘the rights and responsibilities equilibrium’ in favour of the state inherently possesses the potential to produce a reaction at the individual level, even if the person has benefited from it. While individual-level characteristics as a group appeared to explain most of the variation, the effect of country-level policy factors as a group on employment outcomes are more difficult to observe. Thus, when delivering policies targeting the integration of disabled people, it is crucial to take a non-deterministic policy approach where the perspectives of direct stakeholders taken into consideration substantially. Combination of activation focus with protection systems could be a better strategy in transforming the employment situation of disabled people.

This thesis describes an exploratory study of the adaptation of Turkish migrant workers to life and work in the United Kingdom. The researcher's aim was to investigate migration phenomenon from a psychological view point taking the individual as the unit of analysis. The study set out to answer a-number of research questions, the most important of which were; Firstly what are the changes experienced by individuals during and after migration and what relationship, if any, is there between these changes and each individual's adjustment to the UK; and secondly, what factors, other than change, facilitate or hinder successful adjustment to the new environment.

In the past the method used in most migration studies has been to examine the census material relating to a particular population movement and to record some of the sociological characteristics such as age, sex or occupation with the aim of relating these 'selective' characteristics to their economic, political or social causes. The aim of the present study has been to investigate some of the psycho-social characteristics of a limited category of emigrants who are intending to leave Britain for Australia under the Assisted Passage Scheme. In this way it has been possible to gain some understanding of the process by which certain individuals ultimately decide to emigrate whilst others do not. The method employed has been to comeare an emigrant sample (N = 80) with a non-emigrant sample (N = 80) on a variety of psycho-social variables having matched both samples on relevant background variables. Possible differences between the two samples have been conceptualised as taking place in the three areas of 'Disorganization' 'Opportunity' and 'Personality' and the empirical findings are analysed within this framework. The results suggest that at the present time skilled manual workers who are leaving Britain for Australia under the assisted passage scheme have experienced slightly more 'disorganisation' thanthe matched group of non-emigrants. In terms of 'opportunity' therewas little to suggest that emigrants have fewer ties than non-emigrants but some factors were found that had helped to make the emigrants more aware of the 'opportunity' that exists in Australia. In the field which has been broadly designated as 'personality' it was found that more emigrants than non-emigrants knew more about Australia, and that emigrants axe more likely to have extravert temperaments than non-emigrants. The motives which emigrants give to account for their own decision to emigrate almost always emphasize some positive aspect of Australia - particularly the opportunities that exist for themselves and their children. It is apparent that they tend to have very high expectations with regard to their future in Australia but that these expectations are often mixed with some anxiety. In conclusion some suggestions for further research have been made and the need for theoretical developments in the social psychology of migration is discussed.

This thesis includes an examination of the rehabilitation process of adult male offenders with a mental disorder. More specifically, it examines the effectiveness of treatment, and the community rehabilitation of adult mentally disordered offenders (MDOs). In Chapter 1 a literature review following a systematic approach examined the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural interventions with adult MDOs in inpatient settings. Results revealed such interventions have the potential to improve: problem solving ability, social-cognitive skills, social adjustment, hostile and aggressive behaviour, and awareness of illness, ultimately bringing about a reduction of antisocial thinking and behaviour. The review findings were considered in relation to study quality and methodological limitations and recommendations for future research were discussed. In Chapter 2, an empirical research study gathered qualitative information of the experiences of adult male MDOs under Section 37/41 of the Mental Health Act (1983) who had been given a conditional discharge into the community. Results offered preliminary indications of influential factors at the individual level for the process of MDOs reintegration into the community. Recommendations for future research were discussed along with the clinical implications of the findings. A case study is presented in Chapter 3, evaluating the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioural intervention with an adult male offender suffering anxiety and depression serving a sentence at HMP Cardiff. This case study demonstrated the importance of individual assessment and formulation in developing appropriate and effective interventions to meet client needs and highlighted the need to address prisoners’ mental health before they are released into the community. Future directions were considered with regards to working with offenders in prison settings. In Chapter 4 a critique of the CRIME-PICS-II (Frude, Honess & Maguire, 1994) offered a review of the tool in terms of its development, purpose, use, relevance to intervention planning and assessment, scientific and psychometric properties and its ease of use and accessibility. Further, it considered the tools applicability to forensic and clinical settings before exploring some of the limitations associated with its use. The implications of the thesis findings are finally considered in terms of existing limitations, clinical implications and future research.