Framing Active Labour Market Policy

Contrary to passive benefits, ALMPs are intended to reskill individuals and require their ‘active’ participation to facilitate reinstatement into the labour market. In this thesis, I investigate how ALMPs do not remain a mere symbolic political message but become something which significantly helps individuals and benefits society. In particular, the thesis tries to raise the understanding of the economic and social effects of the law reflected in: i) the promotion of targeted reforms, ii) the evolution of labour market instruments embraced or disregarded by lawmakers, and iii) the existence of an identity in the labour market which has a social dynamic. First, I study the effect of participating in a European active labour market policy aimed at fighting youth inactivity; namely, the recent Youth Guarantee. Then, I use text analysis to illustrate how the progressive emergence of an ALMP approach in the law corresponds, over time, to the rising success of policymakers in fighting unemployment and preventing the NEET emergency. Finally, I exploit experimental methods to demonstrate that occupationally inactive individuals may deviate from standard social norms, such as working, and therefore may avoid participating in job training, due to negative peer pressure from their sub-cultural group of reference. In conclusion, this thesis sheds new light on the economic, institutional, and social implications of an active labour market policy approach by showing that measures to fight occupational inactivity can be effective insofar as we consider their framing; namely, their target, their institutional framework, and their societal role.