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CHAPTER I

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deprivation, and in the case of raclal discriraination), or be due (or reinforced) by educational or training processes. Sooietines youth policies could paradoxlcal 1 y contrlbute to the stigmatization process. These young people get precarious jobs for short periods but face . long spells of unenployient;

(e.6) the physlcally or mentally handicapped.

While we do not pretend that the above list is exhaustive, It is worthwhile to renark that many of the people within the groups outlined above may not belong to the labour force, according to the traditional statistical deflnition of it. In fact this deflnition is no longer sufflcient to capture the whole of the people that, under different circumstances, would accept to work at prevailing pay conditions.

A second important observation is that the groups who face unemployment and social probleis are, and are likely to renain for the next few years, minorities: dramat!cally relevant minorities, .if considered from the viewpoint of the psychological conditions and the ąuality of life of the involved people, let alone the loss of potential output, but certainly minorities from a political point of view. And because of several reasons, such ainorities are likely to have little or no 'voice' at all, which makes them a relatively uninteresting clientele from a political point of view, with possibly the only noticeable exception of cases of huge territorial concentration of unemployaent, as it happens in traditional backward areas or ln areas ln which declining industrial sectors are concentrated (see g.4 below).

(f)    In fact nost of the European governments appear to have downgraded the priority of fighting unemp 1 oyaent; aiost of them appear to rely upon deaiographic self- adjustraents. This attitude aiight result short-sighted, in face of the growing tendency of wonen to enter the labour market and to keep staying within it, and given the relatively Iow ratę of female activity rates all throughout Europę and the growing tendency of eaiployers to hire woaien,

(g)    The phenomena considered above have been associated with, or accoaipanied by, relevant changes

(g.l) in the industrial strategies of firms. Largest firms decreased their employment, while new smali firms were created, either Independent or controlled by the largest ones. New networks of co 11aborati on among firms have been created. The embodiment of new technologies, often labour saving, accelerated. Only smaller firms show a positive balance in terms of jobs creation;

(g.2 ) ln personnel management and industrial relations strategies. Many firms are dropplng the previously prevailing strategy of internal labour markets, while