Would Active Labour Market Policies Enhance Youth Capability for Work in Europe?

Abstract

Activation has become one of the keys to integrate people into the labour market at the European level. The implementation of these policy lines raises acute questions as to whether the conditions are actually met in order that young entrants can exercise their responsibility and take part in the labour market while promoting respect for their real freedom to choose the work they have reason to value. The capability approach is used here to understand how individual and environmental factors interactively affect processes that lead to a capability for work. The paper shows that there is a lack of evidence that active labour market expenditures are effective in achieving their goal of inserting people into a process of employment quality and enhancing their capability for work.