The focus of this thesis is on the precast concrete products manufacturing industry, which as one of the labour-intensive industries requires a substantial number of highly skilled operators in terms of crews to produce the final product. A crew is a group of multi-skilled chargehands and operators that have various skills and experience necessary to conduct an activity in a professional way. The high cost of skilled operators and the apparent inefficiencies of utilising such skilled operators in the industry are the major driving force. To achieve this, optimal crew allocation is required. Crew allocation is complex because of the multi-criteria nature of the problem and availability of thousands of possibilities and allocation alternatives. There is a gap in previous research efforts associated with crew allocation planning in the precast industry. Current practices suggest that the crew allocation process is carried out intuitively and the allocation of crews to production processes is subjective. This has led to high process-waiting times, improper allocation of skilled operators and ultimately higher production costs. In this context, the aim of this research is to propose an effective crew allocation methodology and a computer-based intelligent simulation model for its implementation. The objective of the approach is to guarantee a better workflow through minimising process-waiting time, optimising operator utilisation, and subsequently reducing the allocation cost. This research develops a holistic and integrated methodology for modelling crew allocation problems by reviewing state-of-art resource allocation techniques, structured interviews with production managers, site visits and a detailed case study. The methodology is developed using an IDEF0 process model and a generic process map for both the business and the production processes of the precast manufacturing system. A multi-layered genetic algorithm model is developed in conjunction with a process-simulation model to form a hybrid allocation system dubbed ‘SIM_Crew’. The model incorporates databases (Excel and MS Access), a simulation model (developed using Arena 12.0) and genetic algorithms (developed using Visual Basic for Applications) to facilitate the generation and evaluation of various “what-if” crew allocation scenarios. A number of performance criteria have been developed to evaluate the allocation plans. ‘SIM_Crew’ enables the investigation and analysis of allocating possible schedules and provides a facility to visualise the production processes. ‘SIM_Crew’ was validated using real life case study data and it was concluded that the allocation of crews to precast processes using genetic algorithm improves the throughput time and reduces the allocation cost as compared with real life production data. It is anticipated that future use of this research will solve the crew allocation problem in the precast industry.

The significance of flows of temporary, skilled labour migrants under conditions of globalization is widely acknowledged. Using a case study of elite cricket professionals moving from the UK to Australia for a maximum duration of 6 months, out and return migration flows and processes are examined. In doing so, this thesis exposes migration motives, notably in relation to career progression and personal development, and the processes and regulations that control temporary sojourns. Furthermore, the discussion reveals important social, cultural, economic and familial impacts of undertaking temporary, skilled, international migration. Using this case study of a sport-led migration, a largely under-researched occupational sector in migration studies, a number of theoretical, conceptual and empirical contributions are provided, which advance knowledge of skilled, international migration. First, utilising Bourdieu's (1986) notions of capital as an analytical framework, the comparative importance of migration motives are emphasised. Second, it is shown that migration can be viewed as a normalised aspect of a skilled worker's career trajectory, and that desired outcomes can be achieved during increasingly temporary stays overseas. Third, a three phase model of the migration flow is adopted to enable the development of professionalization and migration within cricket to be examined. It is asserted that cricket, as a professional sport, has changed under conditions of globalization, alongside smaller scale developments initiated by both employers and intermediaries, and the migrant cricketers. It is concluded that these connections will have salience for the other skilled occupations identified in Salt's (1997) typology of highly-skilled migrants.

This paper investigates in what way employment for low-skilled workers is connected to the wage dispersion in a country by comparing Sweden to six European countries. Previous research on this topic used cross-section analysis, but this essay takes another approach by comparing the changes in the wage dispersion and employment and by breaking down the change in the wage dispersion into parts and studying the change in the wage for different percentiles. The paper finds that wages in Sweden have not converged, which likely contributed to the increase in the employment gap between people with high and low skills. Two countries with different development were Germany and Norway. In line with recent research, in Germany, wage inequality increased and the employment gap between people with high and low skills decreased. In comparison, the case of Norway has not received much attention among researchers. Wages converged more in Norway than in Germany, yet employment increased more in Germany. The paper suggests a potential explanation: wages for the bottom percentiles of the earnings distribution fell in Germany, which it did not in Norway.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / Skilled birth attendance at childbirth is vital for decreasing maternal and child mortality in Zimbabwe. Infant mortality and maternal mortality in Zimbabwe are quite high due to low- use of skilled birth attendance. Based on different study sources, home delivery with complications are high, with many socio-economic and demographic associated factors including lack or no use of skilled birth attendance at childbirth in Zimbabwe. Therefore, the study looked at "preventive" which refers to an action taken to reduce or eliminate the probability of specific undesirable events or dangers from happening in the future and the present time in Zimbabwe. The objective of the study was to highlight the significance of the crucial function within the health systems of saving both the lives of a mother and the child. Furthermore to determine the frequent use of maternal health care services (skilled birth attendant) and identify factors affecting them. The data that was used was nationally represented large scale secondary data ZDHS of Zimbabwe with sample population n = 9,171. It was a secondary data that included all the provinces of Zimbabwe, simple random sampling was used that had questionnaires of both man, women and household questionnaires, these questionnaires helped in examining the socio-economic factors and determinants that leads to low-use of skilled birth attendants at childbirth. The prosed statistics analysis that were used were univariate, bivariate and multivariate techniques. The statistical analysis showed that demographic variables such age, place of delivery and socio-economic factors such as level of education of a mother and wealth index (occupation of a parent) and region has a significant effect on the use of skilled birth attendant during birth. Women with higher level of education were found to have high use rate of maternal health care services (Skilled birth attendants), while women with primary and secondary education were found to have high use rate of less ( traditional birth attendant) or no use of skilled birth attendant. Therefore, the female age at birth, place of delivery, level of education and wealth index played a major role in decision making about the importance of having a skilled birth attendant when giving birth. The access to skilled birth attendance was found to be a significant factor in reducing maternal and child mortality in Zimbabwe. Furthermore women need to be educated about the importance of maternal health care services use and postnatal care and the department of health in Zimbabwe can implement mobile clinics for those who are residing far from health facilities.

This thesis describes the current situation on the Swedish labour market as many skilledmigrants have problems to find a relevant job. It explains the barriers for employment, aswell as the support mechanisms used to help the integration on the labour market. Particularfocus lies on the job search motivation, and how do the difficulties to find a job in arelevant professional field affect the job search motivation, and what are the reasons forthese effects. Thematic analysis is used to find recurring themes in the data collected from 5 semistructured interviews, 2 questionnaires and 1 additional interview from an employeeworking with the skilled migrants. Empirical findings show, that the respondents feel that local companies prefer localemployees, and that the migrants ascribe their difficulties to find a relevant job position todiscrimination, as it is common that they get rejected without being able to meet thecompany’s representatives in person. Countless rejected applications are causing feelings offrustration, hopelessness and the migrants’ doubt their ability to find a relevant job, whichleads to decreased job search motivation and underemployment. Furthermore, therespondents are rather motivated by extrinsic motivational factors than intrinsic motivators.However, the findings show that they believe that the job search becomes easier withaccumulated experience and that the difficulties with finding the right job makes therespondents more committed to the attained job. Finally, the authors formulate suggestionsfor further research. KEYWORDS: labour market integration, skilled migrants, job search motivation

Operating at the boundaries of philosophy of mind, cognitive science, politics and social theory, this thesis aims to develop an interdisciplinary model of the relationship between agency and structure. This thesis explores the question of why the agency/structure argument in the social sciences has not yet been resolved and argues for an interdisciplinary model of agency to be utilised by social theory. In the wake of poststructuralism there has been a gravitation back towards characterising the terms of this debate in more strongly dichotomous terms, arguing for the autonomy of agency in particular as a natural kind. This trend can be seen most clearly in Archer's analytical dualism within the morphogenetic theory of social elaboration, where the desire for the clarity of dualist terms has become tangled with claims to ontology. I suggest that this tendency is not limited to social theory, but is characteristic of the neoliberal political environment from which such theory is being produced, understood and utilised. Understanding the way in which our political and social context influences the ways in which we may understand or conceptualise a problem such as this, establishing the logical intuition and methods which we use to do this kind of deductive reasoning, is key for both performing the philosophical task of engaging in the agency-structure debate, but is thoroughly interrelated with how we need to conceptualise that relationship itself. It is both the method and the content, the 'how' and the 'what', of investigating the relationship between external social structures and the feeling of autonomous authorship and choice. I argue that the political value system inherent to neoliberal and economic logics, which prioritise and naturalise individuality and autonomous, internal agentic capacity, works to make the experience of agency appear inevitable and universal. This thesis engages with the assumptions that underpin this illusion, looking to philosophy of mind in order to etch out a framework for understanding agency. This framework has two necessary components. Firstly, that it acknowledges the experience of agency as real, and that as a way-of-being-in-the- world it is necessary to continue to explore how individuals experience agency in their environments. Secondly, and most importantly, that this 'realism' about agency, does not inevitably indicate that agency has an ontological and epistemological reality that transcends the particular social and political contexts in which it makes sense. The thesis explores how the fundamental components of agency, intelligence and cognition are produced in the interrelationships between a subject and their physical, social and political environment. The argument presented is that deliberative consciousness and self-awareness emerge as a response to, and as an effect of, complex social interaction. In contrast to Archer's conception of the sui generis, causal efficacy of reflexive agency, this thesis argues that smooth, embodied, coping with the environment is the preferred mode of interacting with the world. By critically engaging with the idea that those studying social dynamics should conceptualize agency as internal and inherent the thesis explores and critiques the prevalent use of the term 'agency' within social theory, arguing that an explicit engagement with what agency is is an understudied but fundamental and necessary philosophical task within sociology. A strong position is proposed that social institutions not only precede the self-aware, experience of choice and autonomy, but actively produce it. This proposition stands in opposition to dualistic notions of agency and structure as they are conceived by critical realism. This has widespread political implications in a field that often assumes agency to be an intrinsic part of human nature that stands outside of socialisation. This goal of this thesis is to demonstrate that in order to understand the experience of agency within our particular contexts and how it manifests as a force for social change, social theory must engage critically with philosophy of consciousness.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T14:32:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Reynaldo Antonio Forte Junior.pdf: 2611571 bytes, checksum: 8482e8d83e5e0732293785f83fee5cca (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-05-18 / Secretaria da Educação do Estado de São Paulo / This study examines textbooks and other multimedia materials produced for the Professional Qualification Program (Programa de Qualificação Profissional, PEQ, in Portuguese), one of the measures of the Department of Employment and Labor Relations (Secretaria do Emprego e Relações do Trabalho, SERT, in Portuguese) in the State of São Paulo, established in 2007 after a full diagnosis at the state level with the purpose of promoting workers -- or those looking for employment -- qualification. In search of evidences to corroborate this analysis, we seek to understand the articulations of SERT with their partners and the methodological approaches used in the creation and development of the course. In order to this, we followed a teachers training program at the Paula Souza Center, sponsored by FUNDAP. We took part in the PEQ students first reception at the Paula Souza Center and interviews were held with the mulimedia materials producers on TV Cultura and with the technicians of SERT. Moreover, important documentation from the Department of Employment and Labor Relations was read. In the period this research, some of the main activities of SERT were articulated projects in qualifying workers. For the development of the research and data analysis, a survey was applied to twenty-five teachers working in partner schools. Data collection looks for evidence of efficient taking in use of the multimedia materials and its suitability to students who are, in general terms, badly-off, low educated people with problems of self-esteem. Research data shows that a worker qualification program, when offered with a good methodological content and developed in multimedia materials is capable of availing unemployed workers in finding a new job. These actions are boosted by the diffusion in complementary media, by an institution responsible for social programs / Esta pesquisa analisa os materiais didáticos do Programa de Qualificação Profissional PEQ, elaborado em mídias integradas, uma das ações da Secretaria do Emprego e Relações do Trabalho SERT em São Paulo, implantado em 2007 a partir de um amplo diagnóstico a nível estadual com a finalidade de promover a qualificação de trabalhadores ou daqueles em busca de emprego. Na investigação de indicativos para subsidiar a análise, procura-se entender as articulações da SERT junto às suas parcerias e as concepções metodológicas empregadas na criação e desenvolvimento do curso. Para isto, acompanhou-se uma capacitação de professores no Centro Paula Souza promovida pela FUNDAP. Participou-se da recepção dos alunos do PEQ no primeiro dia de aula na unidade escolar do Centro Paula Souza e realizaram-se entrevistas com os elaboradores dos materiais didáticos na TV Cultura, com os técnicos da SERT. Além disso, realizou-se o estudo de documentos institucionais da Secretaria do Emprego e Relações do Trabalho. Destacam-se, durante a pesquisa, ações articuladas da SERT na qualificação dos trabalhadores. Para o desenvolvimento do trabalho e análise dos dados, foi aplicado um questionário a 25 professores atuantes nas escolas parceiras. A coleta dos dados busca indicativos da apropriação eficaz do material elaborado em múltiplas mídias e sua adequação ao perfil do aluno que se encontra em desalento profissional, com baixa escolaridade e estima. Os resultados da pesquisa evidenciam que o curso de qualificação do trabalhador oferecido com conteúdo metodológico e desenvolvido em materiais didáticos em múltiplas mídias é capaz de favorecer a inserção do trabalhador desempregado no mercado de trabalho. Essas ações são potencializadas pela veiculação em mídias complementares, por meio de uma instituição articuladora de programas sociais

As propriedades rurais brasileiras evoluíram muito nas últimas décadas, obrigando os agricultores a melhorarem sua gestão. Se em diversas áreas da empresa os proprietários rurais conseguiram desenvolver seu negócio, na gestão de pessoas esses ainda possuem vasto espaço para melhorias. Isso tem causado graves problemas, tais como: dificuldade de retenção de pessoas qualificadas, prejuízos na produção e custo elevado de manutenção de máquinas e equipamentos. Tendo isso em vista, o presente estudo visa a identificar os fatores relevantes para retenção de mão de obra rural qualificada nas empresas agrícolas patronais e que utilizam tecnologias avançadas de modo que essas possam melhorar sua gestão de pessoas. Para atingir o objetivo proposto foram aplicados questionários quantitativos com produtores rurais patronais que possuem tecnologias avançadas e com técnicos agrícolas do Rio Grande do Sul. Enquanto os primeiros expressam a perspectiva dos gestores rurais, os segundos representam o tipo de mão de obra demandado pelas empresas rurais. Constatou-se que, segundo os agricultores, para um funcionário ser bem sucedido e permanecer na empresa ele deve, principalmente, ser honesto, ter comprometimento, ter responsabilidade, buscar conhecimento e ser proativo. Esse sujeito da pesquisa considera também que os técnicos agrícolas são mais aptos para trabalhar no meio rural do que os demais funcionários rurais. A grande maioria dos técnicos agrícolas está mais satisfeita trabalhando no meio rural e prefere trabalhar nesse ambiente, contudo quase metade deles prefere residir no urbano. Verificou-se que os agricultores possuem perspectivas muito diferentes dos técnicos agrícolas quanto a maioria dos fatores que podem ou não reter funcionários rurais, principalmente, ao avaliar sua propriedade, já que os agricultores avaliaram essas de forma mais positiva em quase todos os fatores em relação aos técnicos agrícolas. Os três fatores com maior diferença foram valor de o salário recebido ser condizente com a qualificação de cada funcionário, superiores serem capazes de gerir a empresa e funcionários receberem recompensas por desempenho individual; esses representam fatores os quais foram muito bem avaliados pelos produtores rurais e mal avaliados pelos técnicos agrícolas. Com base nos resultados, os produtores não somente sabem que precisam melhorar sua gestão de pessoas, mas também estão cientes de quais são exatamente os fatores que precisam ser repensados e melhorados para que consigam reter a nova mão de obra que tanto necessitam. / Brazilian rural properties’ have evolved significantly in recent decades, forcing farmers to improve their management. Landowners have developed its business in many areas but still have a large room for improvement regarding people management. This has caused serious problems, such as difficulty in retaining qualified people, losses in production and high maintenance costs of machinery and equipment. Therefore, the present study aims to identify the relevant factors for retaining skilled rural labor in unfamiliar agricultural business that uses advanced Technologies so they can improve the workforce management. To achieve this purpose, quantitative questionnaires were applied with rural producers that use advanced Technologies and agricultural technicians from Rio Grande do Sul. As the first express the perspective of rural managers, the latter represent the type of labour demanded by rural businesses. It was found that according to the farmers, for an employee to be successful and stay in business, he should mainly be honest, have commitment, take responsibility, seek knowledge and be proactive. They also believe that agricultural technicians are more suitable to work in rural areas than other rural workers. The vast majority of agricultural technicians are more satisfied working in rural areas and prefer to work in that environment, yet almost half of them prefer to live in urban areas. It was also found out that farmers and agricultural technicians have a very different perspective regarding what may or may not retain rural workers, mainly when assessing property, as farmers evaluated these more positively in almost all factors than the agricultural technicians. As an example, the three factors with the greatest difference were if the wage received is consistent with the qualifications of each employee, if the superior is able to manage the company and if employees receive rewards for individual performance; these represent factors which were very well evaluated by farmers and poorly assessed by agricultural technicians. The main conclusion is that after this research producers not only know they need to improve their people management, but are also aware of exactly which factors need to be rethought and improved so that they can hold the workforce they need.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine relationships between gender and race, disability status, single parent status, and economically disadvantaged status of students enrolled in Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology advanced manufacturing skills programs. Furthermore, this study determined if there were significant relationships between race and disability status, single parent status, and economically disadvantaged status of students enrolled in Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology advanced manufacturing skills programs. Finally, differences in completion rates between female and male students as well as differences in completion rates between white and nonwhite students enrolled in Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology advanced manufacturing skills programs. Archival data from Fall 2014 were collected from the Office of Research and Assessment at the Tennessee Board of Regents for each student at the point of enrollment. Chi-square tests of independence were used to determine if significant relationships existed between demographic variables and completion rates. Significant relationships were found between gender and race where there more white females and males than nonwhite females and males. Significant relationships between gender and disability status were discovered where there were more students of both genders who were not disabled than were disabled. Significant relationships between race and single parent status were found in that more nonwhite students were single parents than white students. Significant relationships between race and economically disadvantaged status indicated more nonwhite students were economically disadvantaged than white students. Significant differences between gender and program completion rate were realized in that more males completed their programs of study than females. Finally, significant differences were discovered between race and program completion rate revealing more white students completed their programs of study than nonwhite students. However, there were no significant differences found between race and disability, between gender and economically disadvantaged status, and gender and single parent status.

Staff in skilled nursing facilities (SNF) can experience physical and emotional strain via caregiving. The purpose of this study was to educate staff on the harm of compassion fatigue and a lack of emotional intelligence and provide steps that can be taken by administration to improve the quality of care provided. It was hypothesized for staff that having low compassion fatigue and high emotional intelligence would result in a higher quality of care. The study design utilized a quantitative approach and a purposive sample from a SNF. Participants were provided with The Professional Quality of Life 5 Scale (ProQoL 5), Wong & Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS), and survey data received from Department of Public Health. A Multiple Regression test analyzed the relationship between compassion fatigue and emotional intelligence on the quality of care provided by staff members. The results of this study indicated that staff’s compassion fatigue was not indicative of quality of care; however, Self-Emotional Appraisal, a subscale of WLEIS, was found to predict the quality of care. This study assisted with informing SNF staff in recognizing how managing their emotions could be a useful tool to improve the quality of care they provide. Lastly, SNF administration could implement policies, procedures, and in-services to ensure that all staff members are educated in identifying emotions and practicing self-care