abstract: 'This paper analyses the barriers to work faced by long- and short-term

  unemployed people in remote rural labour markets. Applying a broad

  concept of `employability'' as an analytical framework, it considers the

  attributes and experiences of 190 job seekers (22\% of the registered

  unemployed) in two contiguous travel-to-work areas (Wick and Sutherland)

  in the northern Highlands of Scotland. The labour demand side of

  employability is also considered through interviews with 17 employers.

  The paper identifies the specific job search and other employment

  problems faced by unemployed people living in isolated rural communities

  (labour supply); considers the perspective of employers (labour demand);

  and discusses potential policies to address the needs of unemployed

  individuals. Many job seekers were found to have gaps in generic and

  job-specific skills, whilst some (particularly males) were reluctant to

  pursue opportunities in non-traditional sectors of the economy. The

  importance of informal job search and recruitment networks (which may

  exclude the young and the long-term unemployed) and the lack of access

  to formal employment services in remote areas also potentially

  contributed to labour market disadvantage. Holistic and client-centred

  solutions are required to address the barriers faced by these rural job

  seekers, including adult basic education provision, flexible training

  focussing on skills and work experience with particular relevance to the

  new rural economy, and support services for job seekers in isolated

  areas. These supply-side policies should be combined with demand-side

  measures to stimulate endogenous and exogenous growth in isolated local

  economies. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.'
affiliation: 'McQuaid, RW (Corresponding Author), Napier Univ, Inst Employment Res,
  Redwood House,66 Spylaw Rd, Edinburgh EH10 5BR, Midlothian, Scotland.

  Napier Univ, Inst Employment Res, Edinburgh EH10 5BR, Midlothian, Scotland.

  Napier Univ, Sch Management, Edinburgh EH14 1DJ, Midlothian, Scotland.'
article-number: PII S0743-0167(02)00067-0
author: Lindsay, C and McCracken, M and McQuaid, RW
author-email: r.mcquaid@napier.ac.uk
author_list:
- family: Lindsay
  given: C
- family: McCracken
  given: M
- family: McQuaid
  given: RW
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1016/S0743-0167(02)00067-0
files: []
issn: 0743-0167
journal: JOURNAL OF RURAL STUDIES
keywords: unemployment; employability; labour markets; remote rural areas
keywords-plus: INFORMATION; NETWORKS
language: English
month: APR
number: '2'
number-of-cited-references: '49'
orcid-numbers: 'McQuaid, Ronald/0000-0002-5342-7097

  Lindsay, Colin/0000-0003-2493-6797'
pages: 187-200
papis_id: b22aeecc9ca97fef2a07e094ae75154c
ref: Lindsay2003unemploymentduration
researcherid-numbers: 'McQuaid, Ronald/K-6219-2012

  '
times-cited: '45'
title: Unemployment duration and employability in remote rural labour markets
type: Article
unique-id: WOS:000181952800004
usage-count-last-180-days: '2'
usage-count-since-2013: '18'
volume: '19'
web-of-science-categories: Geography; Regional \& Urban Planning
year: '2003'