Vocational training: a transition towards the employment of young job seekers in Brussels with limited education?

The French-speaking professional training system in Brussels significantly improves the opportunities for the professional integration of participants, in particular with respect to vocational training. The possible impact of this – particularly as a second chance for young people with the lowest qualifications – is, however, limited by the recruitment practices of companies. While they generally favour those who have undergone vocational training, other criteria are taken into consideration when there is a shortage of job vacancies. The most vulnerable youth benefit less from their vocational training, especially in terms of job stabilisation. It therefore seems necessary to combine economic development and the safeguarding of educational pathways in order to take action against unemployment in Brussels.


Introduction
1. Many young people leave the education system with low (or no) qualifications, and many of them are unable to find a job. In this context, which is particularly striking in the Brussels-Capital Region [OBE, 2010;Roesems et al., 2006], acquiring qualifications, in particular through professional training aimed at job seekers, seems to be a key element for integration. Many policies therefore focus on bringing the qualifications acquired or to be acquired closer to the needs of labourproviding companies (e.g. [European Council, 2010]). Despite the attempts to implement such recommendations, continuing unemployment leads us to question the room for manoeuvre of professional training in dealing with employment issues [Tanguy, 1994;Gautier, 1994].
2. On this matter, Maroy [2000] contrasted two public action frameworks as regards training. 1 The first one is the 'liberal social' framework, which is based on the idea that we live in an evolving society, and postulates the necessity to encourage individuals to accept and follow these changes. Training becomes a vector for the mobilisation of people in employment. As such, it can play a key role in reducing unemployment. The second one is the 'social-democratic' framework, which does not allow employment problems to be translated into training problems. The source of unemployment is the shortage of jobs and the policy in this area must be directed mainly at job creation. Unemployment is not explained primarily by a mismatch between supply and demand, even if on an individual basis the training of an unemployed person may help with reintegration. It is therefore important for training to have wider purposes than simply meeting the requirements of the job market (a means of empowering citizens and an instrument for the equalisation of opportunities between social groups).
3. In this article, we shall attempt to support the hypothesis according to which the description of individual pathways validates the postulates of the social democratic framework, whereas the liberal social framework has strongly influenced policy choices as regards employment and training for about twenty years. We shall thus identify different educational pathways which mobilise (or are likely to mobilise) vocational training, and compare them with careers on the job market. Does the training system guarantee access to employment (section 3)? In a context based on the ability of individuals to make use of the systems, is the training-to-employment process fair? We examine in particular whether vocational training provides a second chance for early schoolleavers, by distinguishing equitable 2 access to vocational training andfor those who have finished this training -equitable access to (sustainable) employment (section 4).
4. Before examining these questions, we shall discuss the organisation of professional training in the Brussels-Capital Region (section 1), as well as the data used for the research (section 2).
1. The organisation of professional training in the Brussels-Capital Region: favouring access to education and employment 5. The high number of low-skilled job seekers in the Brussels Region justifies the maintenance and reinforcement of a socioprofessional integration (ISP) system organised by ACTIRIS (organisation in charge of placing job seekers in the Brussels Region), in partnership with Brux-elles Formation, VDAB (body which organises professional training for Dutch speakers in Brussels) and the training and integration associations in Brussels.
6. Bruxelles Formation 3 is a public body in charge of organising professional training for French-speaking adults in Brussels. It offers several hundred training courses, in collaboration with many professional sectors, educational institutions and professional integration organisations, as well as with organisations in charge of training courses for disabled people. 4 7. Bruxelles Formation intervenes both as a training operator, by planning and offering training courses in its own centres, and as a manager, by planning and organising a partnership with other organisations which contribute to its policy. In particular, fifty socioprofessional integration organisations (OISP) 5 are partners of Bruxelles Formation. For example, a vocational training course may be taken in one of the Bruxelles Formation centres, or in a partner organisation which provides this type of training.
8. The decree of 1995 defined several types of provider corresponding to the preferred courses of action. In addition to 'vocational training', let us mention three types of training which are usually referred to as 'pre-qualifications': • Basic training, which allows 'trainees' to update their general knowledge and to acquire overall skills without a particular connection to any profession; • Pre-training, which allows trainees to acquire the basic skills related to a profession; • The 'identification' modules which help the trainees to define their professional projects. 'Targeted identification' is part of pre-training (whereas 'general identification' is a remobilisation practice).
9. In the framework of this decree, the public served by the partners corresponds to unemployed and 'low-skilled' 6 job seekers. In concrete terms, 80% of this public have at the most a lower secondary diploma or a foreign diploma (regardless of the level). The local approach of community partners leads one to assume that other vulnerability criteria are also met by these providers.
10. The political stakeholders of the system in Brussels underline the necessity to develop partnerships between the different training and integration providers. They must reinforce '(…) the capacity of job seekers and workers to enter and remain in the job market by developing their skills, thus meeting the needs of society and employers.' 7 In particular, they must favour the transition from 'pre-qualifying' training courses to 'qualifying' training courses, or in other words, the access to vocational training for those who do not have the prerequisites. Tools have been developed to favour these transitions (in particular 'bridge courses' and 'streams').

Mobilisation of administrative data to examine educational pathways and careers
11. In order to understand the reality of educational pathways and to view them in relation to the careers on the job market, we have mobilised administrative data [Clette et al., 2013]. In the framework of a collaboration between Bruxelles Formation and METICES -ULB, 8 we have combined a database which provides us with information about training courses taken over a 7-year period, and a database which provides us with information about the jobs on the labour market during the same period (we have taken into account jobs during successive quarters). Upstream from this research, the development of a 'job market and social protection' data warehouse at Banque Carrefour Sécurité sociale (BCSS) 9 which we have used, is partly due to the low level of public financing of studies on education, training and the job market in French-speaking Belgium [Crisp, 1989;Desmarez et al., 1987].
12. We have used the 2008 calendar year in this case and have identified a reference training course, which is the last training course taken in the year, based on the date of the end of the training. For each reference training course, the educational pathways may be established between 2005 and 2011. It is thus possible to know which training courses have been taken before the reference training course ('upstream' period), and which training courses were taken after the reference training course ('downstream' period), if applicable. We may also look at the career paths by distinguishing the two subperiods.
3. Taking a professional training course: a key moment in the paths of job seekers?

Vocational training: a focal point of educational pathways?
13. The relative significance of the types of training may be understood by describing the reference training course. The 7,451 people were enrolled in particular in a literacy course (447) 14. During a first analysis of the transitions between types of training, we noticed a relative division between the types of training. In this case we are interested in the transitions between 'pre-qualifying' and 'qualifying' training courses, which are the most common and are associated with a progression towards a qualification. The educational pathways have been considered with respect to the reference training course and the upstream and downstream training courses.
15. In total, we have identified four 'main' types of educational pathway: • 'direct': the reference training course is vocational training and is accessed directly (no pre-qualification in the upstream period) (37.7% of the four types of educational pathway considered); • 'transition upstream': the reference training course is vocational training and is accessed via a pre-qualification (taken in the upstream period) (18.2%);

3
• 'downstream transition': the reference training course is prequalifying training, and is followed by vocational training (taken in the 'downstream' period) (16.1%); • 'dropout': the reference training course is pre-qualifying training, which is not followed by vocational training (no vocational training in the 'downstream' period) (27.9%).
16. These four types of pathway concern 4,151 people, i.e. 57.1% of those who took a training course. Among them, the pathways associated with a transition from pre-qualifying training towards vocational training concern approximately one third of people. There is therefore a relative division between types of training in this case as well.
17. How do these different educational pathways change the direction of careers on the job market? In particular, is vocational training a determining factor?

Vocational training: a turning point of career paths?
18. In order to address these questions, we have made use of a typology of pathways (downstream period) as well as a comparison between people who have undergone training and people from a control group.
19. [Lefresne, 2003] defines integration as 'a process during which different sequences are linked or even entangled: unemployment, training, subsidised employment, temporary employment, etc. The content of each of these sequences, their duration and their order probably has an impact on the outcome and the quality of the integration. Thus, with respect to longer and more complex pathways, the longitudinal approach was preferred to observe, describe and understand the pathways marked by a high level of heterogeneity.' 20. One of the possible longitudinal approaches consists in choosing certain characteristics of the pathways taken, which are relevant to the analysis. The typology of pathways consists in grouping the pathways, based on successive jobs, according to their similarity with respect to the job occupation during the period considered. It is based on 10 all of the individuals (those who have undergone training and the control group). The control group is based on a random selection from all unemployed job seekers who were registered for at least three months and who had not finished professional training in 2008. The sample includes 19,261 individuals, which represents approximately 25% of the actual population. All of the people who have finished a training course (7,160) have been considered. Finally, 26,421 individuals have been taken into consideration in the analysis. 11 21. The seven types of pathway are summarised here, with a distinction made between: • No employment during the period; • Insignificant employment during the period; • Pathway with significant employment at the beginning of the period, leading to unemployment at the end of the period; • Two types of pathway associated with job instability; 12 • Late access to a significant employment sequence; • (Quick) job stabilisation.
22. Next, we use the expression 'getting caught in unemployment' (little or no employment) in reference to the first two types.
23. This typology, which therefore concerns all of the individuals, has been used to measure an impact of training compared with a control group. To do this, we did not consider the original control group, but 4 10 The methodology is presented in the research report. 11 The people who have died or who have moved abroad are not included, as well as the rare people whose training is spread out over a very long period. 12 In one case, the instability is evidenced by the fact that, for many quarters, employment and unemployment alternate during the quarter. In the other case, it is evidenced by the fact that quarters with employment and quarters with unemployment alternate throughout the period.
Matthieu VEINSTEIN & Isabelle SIRDEY, Vocational training: a transition towards the employment of young job seekers in Brussels with limited education?, Brussels Studies, Number 96, February 29 th 2016, www.brusselsstudies.be control groups for each type of training or for each type of educational pathway envisaged. This involved correcting certain composition effects by taking into account the variables of gender, age, level of education and length of unemployment. For example, if the young undereducated women with a short length of unemployment account for 3.5% of those who underwent basic training, it will also be the case among the individuals in the control group associated with this type of training. It was thus possible to make several observations. 24. A vocational training course improves the individual chances for professional integration. 13 With respect to the control group, the chances of experiencing quick and lasting integration increase significantly (36% compared to 16%), whereas in contrast, the risk of not having access to employment is reduced in a comparable proportion. However, even for these people, getting caught in unemployment remains frequent in the post-training period. The first two types of pathway concern just over one third of those who undergo training.
25. Can we speak of a second chance mechanism with respect to the organisation of a transition from pre-qualifying training to vocational training? The comparison of 'upstream' and 'direct' transitions would be in keeping with this. While the public in pre-qualification courses have deficiencies which make it difficult to have direct access to vocational training, afterwards their chances for quick and sustainable integration are comparable to those for individuals who do have direct access.
26. For those who 'drop out', it is common for them to get caught in unemployment, similar to unemployed job seekers in general. How can these pathways be interpreted? The hypothesis is often put forward that an arbitration exists between strategic choice (taking the time for vocational training and improving one's chances for job stabilisation) and tactical choice (setting aside one's educational pathway if the opportunity for gainful employment arises). The difficulties -in particular material -faced by those who take pre-qualifying training courses force them to make tactical choices rather than strategic choices. Our analysis does not allow us to support this hypothesis since the pathways marked by job instability are not more common for those who have 'dropped out'. It is probable, however, that some of them are faced with a tactical choice involving undeclared work, which would not be found in our data. But the difficulties to access vocational training and to have a job (regardless of what it is), probably concern a significant number of those who 'drop out'.
27. Do differences exist according to the type of pre-qualifying training? Overall, when the reference training course is a pre-training course, the chances of (late) integration are higher and the risk of being caught in unemployment is lower, if we compare it with basic training. This is partly explained by the pathways associated with these types of training. For pre-training, the 'downstream transition' pathway is taken in just over one out of two cases, whereas for basic training, this pathway is only taken in just over one out of four cases. In other words, the risk of dropping out is much higher for participants in a training course for updating basic knowledge.

Vocational training: second chance for young people who have left school without finishing secondary education?
28. Vocational training is one of the systems which is most able to significantly increase the individual chances for (sustainable) access to employment. But, on the one hand, as it is a collective resource which is relatively rare and has many requirements, one may wonder whether the most disadvantaged public are able to access it (4.1). On the other hand, in a context of a shortage of jobs, trained job seekers may be confronted with greater selectivity on behalf of economic stakeholders and working environments, and here as well, the question of accessibility to the best jobs is raised (4.2). We are particularly interested in young people who have left school without an upper secondary school diploma. Do they access vocational training as much as those with a diploma, and when they finish training, do they benefit from comparable integration conditions? 5 13 The comparison with the control group does not take into account certain characteristics which have not been observed.
Matthieu VEINSTEIN & Isabelle SIRDEY, Vocational training: a transition towards the employment of young job seekers in Brussels with limited education?, Brussels Studies, Number 96, February 29 th 2016, www.brusselsstudies.be 29. As mentioned above (section 1), the Bruxelles Formation partners are required to serve a public with a generally low level of education. They may favour access to training for undereducated young people. In order to consider this hypothesis, we have considered the entire sevenyear period and we distinguish between the people who have undergone training with a partner ('partner') and those who have only been to a Bruxelles Formation centre ('Bruxelles Formation').

Beaupere et al.
[2011] insist on the fact that the segregation is partly due to the heterogeneity of the populations concerned, which is difficult to reduce. With respect to the other age categories, overall, young people leave unemployment more often. But while some of them remain unemployed for only a short period, others take a long time to find a job. The length of unemployment could be an indicator of more complex and protean social and personal difficulties. In order to consider this hypothesis, a typology of the upstream period has been used to identify those who were 'caught in unemployment' in the upstream period.

Equitable access to vocational training
31. In order to understand equitable access to vocational training, we asked ourselves whether different groups of young people are well represented in vocational training. We have therefore compared the weight of the group of those who have undergone training and the weight of the group of job seekers (control group). The representation of the different groups may be visualised in Figure 1. 32. Overall, relative equitable access to vocational training is observed for young people, if one considers the levels of education. It is more common for young unemployed people to be undereducated than to have a secondary school diploma, but these proportions are seen among those who undergo vocational training.
33. This relative equitable access to vocational training for young people who have little or no education is based mainly on the involvement of partners. The least educated young people are over-represented in the educational pathways involving a partner, whereas those with secondary school diplomas are under-represented. The opposite is true for young people whose pathways are exclusively linked to Bruxelles Formation, resulting in an overall balance. 34. What is the situation with undereducated young people who were caught in unemployment before their participation? While they are well represented overall in vocational training, this is due even more to the involvement of partners (the point 'undereducated unemployment upstream & partner' corresponds to the undereducated young people who were caught in unemployment upstream and whose pathways include training provided by a partner). The partners therefore appear to favour equitable access to vocational training for undereducated young people, including young people who are more disadvantaged.

Equitable access to (sustainable) employment
35. In a context of a shortage of jobs, trained job seekers may be confronted with the selectivity of the job market. Does each category of young people benefit more -or on the contrary, less -from vocational training, in terms of access as well as job stabilisation? The inequity which may be observed is due to the recruitment practices of companies. The context influences the expectations, to the extent that there may be many candidates.
36. In order to evaluate the impact of training, we have once again compared the pathways of those who have undergone vocational training and those in the control group (Table 1).

37.
A first observation is related to the specificity of young people: whether or not they have undergone vocational training, many of them (approximately 40%) have experienced a precarious pathway downstream (access to employment, but with slow or late stabilisation). It appears that the description of the professional integration of young people proposed by [Lefresne, 2003] applies to young job seekers in Brussels. The criterion for access to employment is insufficient to illustrate the conditions regarding the integration of young people.
38. For young people, the level of education (secondary school diploma or not) continues to influence the chances of integration of those who have undergone vocational training. The difference lies especially in the chances of experiencing rapid job stabilisation. It is as though the companies with vacancies targeted those with a diploma as a priority, thus contributing more to their rapid job stabilisation. While undereducated young people often have access to employment, they benefit less often from significant professional experience over the period, and their job stabilisation is less likely.
39. We have considered the vulnerability of young people by distinguishing those who were caught in unemployment in the upstream period. These young people benefit less from vocational training. Or rather, compared with other young people, although they increase their chances of accessing employment, these jobs are more likely to be precarious or to have late stabilisation.
40. The impact of stakeholders in the area of training is very noticeable. Let us first specify that the partners serve more young people who were caught in unemployment upstream, whereas Bruxelles Formation serves more young people who had temporary or unstable jobs. 41. What is the impact of training provided by these two stakeholders for young people who were caught in unemployment upstream? While partners contribute more to serving this vulnerable public, vocational training is much less associated with possibilities for rapid job stabilisation. Access to employment takes place more often through precarious jobs. Although the workforce is smaller, a similar observation may be made for undereducated young people. In connection with the vulnerability of some sectors of the public and recruitment selectivity, the training provided by partners favours access to employment, but is unable to guarantee job stabilisation. Instead, it appears to be a step in professional integration, according to [Lefresne, 2003].

42.
Generally speaking, the French-speaking professional training system in Brussels greatly increases the opportunities for professional integration. This is true in particular for vocational training. This reflects the effectiveness of a training offer which adapts continuously to the needs of companies.
43. Is vocational training a vector for a transition towards employment for job seekers in Brussels with limited education, in particular young people? Beyond the effectiveness of the training offer, we wonder about its broader impact on unemployment in Brussels.

44.
A first perspective consists in questioning the complementarity of the professional training courses offered. In particular, do the prequalifying training courses lead to vocational training, and do they allow equitable access to employment for the people who did not have direct access to the qualifying training courses? The results are mixed. On the one hand, the dynamics of training providers makes the transition towards qualifications and employment possible for part of the public who risked being excluded. But on the other hand, the 'drop-out' rate (access to pre-qualifying training, but no transition towards vocational training and employment) is higher. The problem is probably less linked to the fact that these transitions are not systematic, than to the fact that dropping out is associated with a very low impact on the chances of integration. This raises the question once again as to the purposes of the different types of training. One may, however, assume that the trainees often pursue a project for professional integration and that the system is unable to counter the factors leading to exclusion. The problem is more obvious for basic training than for pre-training. Through their activities, the stakeholders in the field have a pragmatic knowledge of the conditions which cause people to drop out, but there is a lack of objectivity which would allow us to understand (by considering the capacity of job seekers to act [Conter et al., 2011]) and make an inventory of the dynamics at work. 45. A second perspective consists in questioning the role of vocational training with respect to people who have little or no qualifications, in particular for young people (under age 25), who often do not have any experience or 'qualifications'. The positive impact of vocational training is often postulated in the analyses about the Region, but the selective mechanisms may be an impediment. We notice that vocational training is accessible in an equitable way to undereducated young people. This equitable access is due to the services provided by the partners of Bruxelles Formation who offer vocational training. The possible impact in terms of a 'second chance' is however reduced by recruitment practices following vocational training. Generally speaking, while companies favour those who have taken these training courses, other criteria are taken into consideration, such as their educational pathway, but not exclusively. The differential stands out especially if we consider the rapid recruitment associated with the possibilities of job stabilisation in the post-training period. With respect to this criterion, those with the lowest level of education benefit less from vocational training. But beyond the level of education, the benefit is limited when there are several indications of vulnerability. It is very small for undereducated young people who were caught in unemployment in the upstream period and who underwent training with a partner; it is very great for young people with a secondary school diploma who have received training in a Bruxelles Formation centre. The most vulnerable groups benefit from training, but more with respect to pathways with slower access to employment or precarious pathways. As regards the safeguarding of career paths, one may consider professional training to be one of the contributing factors, and that the safeguarding also depends on the possibilities of integration in companies [Caillaud et al., 2011].
46. Our observations urge us to go back over the questions raised by Maroy's analysis [2000]. The access to vocational training reinforces the individual chances for professional integration. The effectiveness of training favours this positive impact. Bruxelles Formation and its partners meet the objective assigned to them, i.e. to provide participants with the valued skills for recruitment. However, long-term unemployment remains frequent, including for those who have undergone vocational training. We are therefore tempted to see this as a consequence of the imbalance between job demand and supply. Companies favour skills acquired in training, but the number of jobs is insufficient for all of the people who undergo training, let alone for the many job seekers who do not participate in the training process. The limited recruitment of people who have undergone vocational training goes hand in hand with a selection, which increases the risk of excluding the most vulnerable people. With a stable volume of jobs, one may worry that the impact of vocational training on unemployment in Brussels is weak; training plays a role in adapting the workforce and feeding vacancies, but in itself does not constitute job creation which is likely to absorb the supply of labour. Hence the importance of combining economic development and the safeguarding of educational pathways. 14 If there is fairly strong economic development and no safeguarding of educational pathways, the segregation of the public in Brussels could increase, with some people having little chance of obtaining qualifications and jobs, or at least legal and sustainable jobs. If there is a development of the different types of training and a positive transition towards vocational training and no economic development, the impact of vocational training could be reduced, with an increase in the selection of people who have finished training. It therefore appears to be necessary to carry out a review of the existing training streams (organise upstream transitions from training courses) and their development potential, in connection with regional economic development. This type of diagnosis is on the agenda of the regional government.