Exploring the Portability of Skills and the Precarity of Work

Craig Kensley

22 Mar 2023

Youth Digital Skilling and Uneven Labour-Market Opportunities in Emerging Economies

Young people are increasingly expected to develop transferable skills, adapt to changing technologies and move between employers, sectors and platforms. But does greater skills portability actually translate into better employment opportunities and sustained economic mobility?

This research paper examines the relationship between digital skilling, labour-market demand and precarious work in emerging economies. Drawing on international research collaboration, labour-market scholarship and practitioner inquiry, it explores why acquiring skills does not necessarily result in access to decent work.

The paper introduces a labour-market conversion architecture linking capability, recognition, employment footholds, accumulated experience, portability and labour demand. It also develops the concept of portable precarity: circumstances in which workers become increasingly skilled and adaptable without gaining corresponding improvements in economic security, bargaining power or career progression.

Research area: Youth Employment, Skills Development & Labour-Market Systems

ORCID: 0009-0009-0704-1060