Neoliberal Policy Tool: Active Labour Market Policies in Turkey and Spain

ABSTRACT

Since activation policies prove their inefficiency in solving existent socio- economic problems, especially after the pandemic crisis of COVID-19, alternative policies other than Active Labour Market Policies (ALMPs) have appeared on the agenda of the EU. This research traces the reasons of the ineffectiveness of activation by highlighting the perception of the beneficiaries of the ALMPs. This article builds on the fieldwork implemented in a member state (Spain) and candidate country (Turkey) of the EU through 78 semi-structured individual interviews with the participants of vocational trainings for unemployed people. Results show that the beneficiaries in both countries are aware of the fact that the activation process does not provide a solution for their socio-economic problems and they desire a decent job, rather than training.