Shortages in the Labor Market - Research Paper Example

? Career Development: Adult Women The situation with older men and women may be different in terms development of careers (Abalos, Robson, Hansson & Booth, 2006). Older women may be in a difficult situation as compared to men for a variety of reasons. According to Abalos et al. (2006), these reasons include but not limited to sophisticated career trajectories, for instance workforce inequality, employment patterns that are broken and part-time employment (p. 159). This paper takes a look at the career development of adult women and the possible responses towards the issues associated with development of their career. Career Development: Adult Women Many countries around the globe are being faced by issues regarding ageing workforces and shortages in the labor market. These issues have complex reasons, where trends like encouraging mature-age employees to retire early so that young people can get a place in the workplace are being witnessed in various countries globally, including the United States of America (Crompton & Harris, 1998). In cases where a mature-age worker is retrenched, Moore (2007) reports that the person’s unemployed state has a devastating financial impact in that they have limited chances of getting re-employed (p. 385). From the perspective of shortages in labor market and ageing population, most are discouraging the premature retirement of aged workers since there is a loss of skilled and experienced workforce. In addition, many are advocating for retirement that is self-fund which means that the ageing worker will work no matter the case. In contrast, it is a burden for most people to fund their retirement as their capability to do so lies with the amounts they earn and period over which they are employed. A good example of how the capabilities of a worker to self-fund or rather live the lifestyles of their choice can be reduced is where an employment trajectory of the worker includes late employment, numerous interruptions, or employment that is part-time. According to McMahon, Arthur and Collins (2008), this career trajectory represents a woman’s employment period. This is because their commitment to their workplaces could be conceptualized as fluctuating with time depending on the living conditions and/or context (Crompton & Harris, 1998). There is a general recognition that integrating women fully and equally at all occupational levels into the working forces will enhance the economic prosperity of a state (Moore, 2007). Contrary to this is that women have been marginalized in the labor forces not in a specific country but nearly the whole world, which is a major issue in the career trajectories of women. A suitable example is Australia where from 1978 to 2009, there was a 15.2% increment of women in the labor forces but still other statistics of the same report show that the issue is yet to be addressed (McMahon, Arthur & Collins, 2008). For instance, part-time work forces are majorly comprised of women while full time jobs are majorly comprised of men. In addition, McMahon, Arthur and Collins (2008) report that the average income of a man is far greater than that of a woman which makes them disadvantaged over time. Global findings have shown dominant signs of occupational segregation where occupations dominated with men pay abundantly while those dominant with women pay less (Cook, Heppner, & O'Brien, 2002). In addition, many organizations are headed by men making women less likely to earn huge sums of cash as compared to men. The employment pattern of a woman is coupled by a host of complex factors interacting with each other (Bimrose, 2001). According to Bimrose (2001), they include culture, context, life stage, supposed support and individuality. As women age, family issues and concerns related to work are not the only changes in the woman’s employment life, there is also a change in the type of support offered by partners (Gordon & Whelan-Berry, 2004, p. 275). No theory has considered the development of a woman’s career sufficiently. In addition, many analysts argue that only half (men) of the population has been adequately served by these traditional theories, leaving the other half (women) inadequately served (McMahon, Limerick, Cranston, & Anderson, 2006). The Developmental Theory These theories tend to predict and explain the way people make sense out of their experience. Two ways can be used to in approaching studies concerning human development: developmental stage theories and developmental phase theories (Crites & Cytrynbaum, 1989). The exploration of the human stages of development involves looking at the typical psychological organization patterns at various stages of a person’s growth. There are a specified number of stages hierarchically arranged and all have descriptions of how people experience themselves and the world (Crites & Cytrynbaum, 1989). On the other hand, developmental phase theories provide a definition of the achievements, tasks, and transitions over a person’s life course. In essence, they emphasize the activities typically carried out by individuals at various ages of life as well as providing a picture of the common view of life. However, this article focuses on developmental stage theories i.e. it explores the powerful though less obvious discrepancies that have a major effect on how clients and career councilors view the whole process of career planning, and themselves (Crites & Cytrynbaum, 1989). For instance, a fresh graduate trying to deal with adult phase of life duties of cementing her place in the world will be of different career expectations as opposed to a 50-year old woman who in essence is reevaluating mid-life priorities. Developmental stage theory helps people view the world in a different way of work while providing insights to a confused client (Rooke & Torbert, 2005). Furthermore, career councilors have the opportunity to reframe the behaviors of clients in a positive way. It also provides a grounded starting point that is developmental to encourage clients to explore their differences, examine their own perspectives and plan their career in a way that validates a starting point that is developmental. What Career Councilor’s Should Do Four processes look obvious to begin with (Crites & Cytrynbaum, 1989): learning about your clients, diversify the various strategies used, understand the career development of yourself, and think in a developmental way. i. Learning about your clients – a career councilor should try and carry out a thorough and complete assessment of each of their clients as well as incorporate developmental thinking into their process of career planning. In particular, the career councilor may be termed as a developmental detective since his/her work is to listen and look for any clue that might indicate that a given client is being shone on by a developmental light. ii. Diversify the various strategies used – a self-protective client may view direct advice on how to secure a job to be a bright idea as opposed to the view of a developmental client. As s result, career councilors need to develop a way of accepting and acknowledging the developmental differences and the fact that they will have to develop more strategies, options, and approaches with which to work with clients along the developmental continuum. iii. Understand your own career development process – the developmental theory does not only provide an insight to the developmental requirements of clients, but also to that of the career councilor. Across a developmental career, a councilor is able to understand preferences that enable them identify their favorite approaches and planning activities and the developmental arguments that a councilor might present as to why they prefer certain clients to others. In essence, career councilors who have a good understanding of their own developmental preferences and tendencies usually have an easy time to differentiate between their developmental needs and those of their clients. Consequently, they can be able to differentiate a client’s developmental realities from their own view of the world of career planning. iv. Thinking in a developmental way – thinking developmentally takes time to come by in a career councilor’s career as they have to learn to do everything in a developmental way; talk, listen, think etc. As a developmental practitioner develops, all this traits are easily evident which help the councilor provide developmental guidance to clients. Conclusion The major objective of CD is meeting the needs of their clients. This only happens when the real needs and not the imagined needs are understood by the councilor with availability of theories that are clear, comprehensive, and predictive with guides to the practice (Abalos et al., 2006). Many decades have gone by yet the theories that exist about career practice assume that men and women experience same career development and behavioral patterns (Women & Work Commission, 2009). It is now better understood that effectiveness across clients can only be achieved if this theories diversify all their forms inclusive of class, gender, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity while at the same time acknowledge the context in which their clients live (Women & Work Commission, 2009). The CD of adult women can be enhanced if new theoretical concepts’ policies and research derived from life experiences of adult women are integrated into the practice. In response to issues to do with labor market and learning of adult women, CD can demonstrate its contribution towards improving the lives of adult women as both private and public good. References Abalos, A., Robson, S. M., Hansson, R. O., & Booth, M. (2006). Successful aging: Criteria for aging well in the workplace. Journal of Career Development, 33, 156-177. Bimrose, J. (2001). Girls and women: Challenges for careers guidance practice. British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 29 (1), 79-94. Cook, E. P., Heppner, M. J., & O'Brien, K. M. (2002). Career development of women of colour and white women: Assumptions, conceptualization, and interventions from an ecological perspective. Career Development Quarterly, 50 (4), 291-305. Crites, J. & Cytrynbaum, S. (1989). A Developmental Model for Career Adjustment During Adulthood. In Arthur, M., Hall, D., and Lawrence, B. (Eds.). Handbook of Career Theory: Perspectives and Prospects for Understanding and Managing Work Experiences. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Crompton, R., & Harris, F. (1998). Explaining women's employment patterns: 'Orientations to work' revisited. British Journal of Sociology, 49 (1), 118-136. Gordon, J. R., & Whelan-Berry, S. (2004). It takes two to tango: An empirical study of perceived spousal/partner support for working women. Women in Management Review, 19(5), 260-273. Johnes, G. (2006). Career interruptions and labour market outcomes. No. 45, Equal Opportunities Commission Working Paper Series. Manchester, UK: Equal Opportunities Commission. McMahon, M., Arthur, N., & Collins, S. (2008). Social justice and career development: Views and experiences of Australian career development practitioners. Australian Journal of Career Development, 17(3), 15-25. McMahon, M., Limerick, B., Cranston, N., & Anderson, C. (2006). Going up? Women's reflection on their careers in the public sector in Queensland. Career Development International, 11, 609-618. Moore, S. (2007). Age as a factor defining older women's experience of labor market participation in the UK. Industrial Law Journal, 36, 383-387. Patton, W., & McMahon, M. (2006). Career development and systems theory: Connecting theory and practice (2nd Ed.). Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers. Rooke, D. & Torbert, W. (2005). Seven Transformations of Leadership. Harvard Business Review. Women & Work Commission. (2009). Shaping a fairer future: A review of the recommendations of the Women and Work Commission three years on. London: Government Equalities Office. Read More