Labour-Market Flexibility and Individual Careers

1. Introduction. - 4 1. 1 Research Context. - 8 1. 2 Research Question. - 16 1. 3 Methodological Approach. - 18 1. 3. 1 Frameworks of Reference. - 18 1. 3. 2 Research Steps and Selection of Participants. - 22 1. 3. 3 Interview Method and Data Analysis. - 23 2. Skills and Labour Markets in Germany and the UK. - 26 2. 1 Introduction. - 26 2. 2 Skills and Labour Markets in Germany. - 30 2. 3 Skills and Labour Markets in the UK. - 34 2. 4 Flexibility, Mobility, Employability. - 38 2. 4. 1 Flexibility. - 39 2. 4. 2 Mobility and Commitment. - 41 2. 4. 3 Employability. - 44 2. 5 From `Skills to `Competences . - 49 2. 6 Reflections. - 55 3. Work and Career Orientations of Nurses. - 59 3. 1 Introduction. - 59 3. 2 Description of the Nursing Sample. - 61 3. 3 Background and Sectoral Context. - 70 3. 4 Modes of Flexibility and Learning Demands. - 78 3. 5 Work and Career Orientations of Nurses. - 84 3. 6 The Role of Learning, Skills and Professional Development. - 103 3. 7 The Role of Peers and Practice Communities. - 116 3. 8 Conclusions. - 118 4. Work and Career Orientations of IT technicians. - 118 4. 1 Description of the IT Sample. - 118 4. 2 Background and Sectoral Context. - 118 4. 3 Modes of Flexibility and Learning Demands. - 118 4. 4 Work and Career Orientations of IT technicians. - 118 4. 5 The Role of Learning, Skills and Professional Development. - 118 4. 6 The Role of Peers and Practice Communities. - 118 4. 7 Conclusions. - 118 5. Reflections on Empirical Findings. - 118 5. 1 Nurses and IT technicians summary of empirical findings. - 118 5. 2 German and UK labour markets opportunities and constraints. - 118 6. Key Issues and Dominant Themes. - 118 6. 1 Control and agency in modern work contexts. - 118 6. 2 Creating coherent career narratives and identity continuities. - 118 6. 2. 1 The notion of `identity . - 118 6. 2. 2 Work-related identities. - 118 6. 2. 3 Creating work-related identity continuities. - 118 6. 3 Tensions between careers, skill profiles and work identity. - 118 6. 3. 1 Developing specialist or general skills or both? - 118 6. 3. 2 Skills and individual careers. - 118 7. Conclusions. - 118 8. References 118 Annexes Appendix I: Methods.