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Working and ageing
176 Guidance and counselling for mature learners

different types of jobs, skills, companies, forms of work organisation and
career patterns. In such circumstances older low-skilled workers could be part
of a ʻfatalisticʼ culture in which they viewed themselves as out of step with the
way the economy was evolving, with immobility being linked to demography
and getting employment depending on luck and contacts rather than individual
merit. Two workers in their 40s exemplified how if they were in employment
they were determined to hang on to their current jobs but saw no prospects of
doing anything else.
The first person had worked in a large factory for 15 years but when that
was restructured he was made redundant and then, after a spell unemployed,
retrained to be a tram driver 10 years ago: ʻI am satisfied with my job because
it is well paid and I can support my family, although it is difficult and stressful.
I donʼt have the formal qualifications to think of a better position in the
company. I am fed up with training and courses.ʼ
The second person was working as a chef: ʻI have no formal qualification.
I learned cooking from my mother and I also learned a lot from my colleagues.
I think it is a good job in that I can support my children growing up without any
other support. The new colleagues that come have certificates but they still
ask for my help. For the future, I am waiting for my pension time only.ʼ
Similarly, seeking to make a labour-market transition at a time of high
unemployment could be constraining. A library and information services
manager in health care recalled how initially: ʻmy career was blighted by the
recession of the early 1980s. I could not find work after university for four
months, and I found the experience of unemployment (and unsuccessful job
interviews) very traumatic. Once I had found work (in the book trade) I stayed
in that sector for too long, fearful of unemployment again, although I was not
happy; it was 11 years before I found my present career as a librarian, in which
I am much happier.ʼ
Some qualified workers had made successful transitions or exhibited
greater resilience in overcoming periods of unemployment, but the extent of
overqualification compared to the jobs available meant that expressed interest
in learning could be driven by personal development rather than being a tool
for career progression. It may be that messages promoting learning through
strongly emphasising employability are less effective than those which
emphasise personal development, establishing social networks, meeting a
wider range of people together with increasing the likelihood of getting
employment. That is, messages should emphasise the immediate benefits
from being a learner rather than seeing learning primarily being judged by
where it might lead.