Informal social capital building in local employment services: Its role in the labour market integration of disadvantaged young people

Abstract

This article focuses on the role that local employment services (LES) play in informal social capital building for young people with a disadvantaged social background. The personal networks of these young people usually embed few useful resources for labour market integration, and LES actions may be an opportunity to informally build a network of contacts with better resources. To explore this possibility, biographical interviews were conducted with 24 young adults who used LES actions, and their employment trajectories were analysed. The findings highlight that these actions—especially those consisting of training or internships—provide social capital that is useful for labour market (re)integration. Linking social capital is the type of social capital that is most useful for job seeking, and it is especially effective in non-metropolitan rural areas.