Career Adaptability and re-employability after long periods of inactivity

Abstract

There has recently been an increasing interest in stimulating re-employment of unemployed workers by so-called active labor market policies. In Italy, the Fiat factory in Termini Imerese (Sicily) is one of the most important business cases in the study of the relationship between economic and psycho-social needs of an entire area in relation to the theme of the work importance. This paper is the result of an agreement signed between our University Department, the company interested to reintegrate ex-FIAT workers (BLUTEC), and the consulting firm who have in charge with this delicate transition process. We want to explore the psychosocial variables related to the long period of inactivity, studyng approximately 700 employees who are in this delicate life transition. We decided to assess the degree of Career adaptability defined by Zacher et al. (2015) as a psychosocial resource that can help employees to effectively manage career changes and challenges. The construct of Career Adaptability refers to four different dimensions: concern, control, curiosity, and confidence (Savickas & Porfeli, 2012). Purpose of this paper is to assess how the Career Adaptability of workers, explored through the ladder Career Adapt-Abilities Scale (CAAS - Italian form, Soresi, Note & Ferrari, 2012) is able to predict the employability of workers to the new company, and the role in this process of some personality variables.