Jelena Helemäe - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Jelena Helemäe

Estonia

East European Politics and Societies

In postcommunist Estonia, the topic of inequality was considered “embarrassing.” The dominant pop... more In postcommunist Estonia, the topic of inequality was considered “embarrassing.” The dominant popular assumption was that inequalities just happen naturally. Class and inequality discourse was effectively marginalized due to long-lasting success in focusing attention on nationalizing issues. A “transition culture” that lionized the capitalist future has also contributed to the marginalization of class discourse. Because of this marginalization, and the power of national/ethnic discourse and transitional culture, those most economically vulnerable were deprived of the cultural and discursive resources to resist the most extreme market-oriented policies. Sociologists did discuss inequality more seriously, but mostly according to a gradational and functional stratification paradigm: the central focus has been on individual attributes that divide people into classes. The analysis focusing on relations of exploitation and domination have been virtually absent in postcommunist Estonia. We...

Differentiated Educational Pathways and Gender Inequalities in the Estonian Labour Market: What Is the Impact of the Systemic Change?

Rethinking Gender, Work and Care in a New Europe, 2016

In this short essay, we try to assess the utility of class analyses for understanding the contemp... more In this short essay, we try to assess the utility of class analyses for understanding the contemporary Estonian society. Erik Wright (2009) identifi es three strands of class analysis: a stratifi cation approach, a Weberian approach and a Marxist approach. We address the following questions: Which kind of class analysis is most present in Estonia today? Which is most needed? The main conclusion is that due to this marginalisation of class discourse, as well as the power of national/ethnic discourse and transitional culture, those most economically vulnerable were deprived of the cultural and discursive resources to resist the most the extreme market-oriented policies. The conditions for structuration of class relations were created, while the class and inequality discourse was marginalised.

A strong VET system is increasingly seen as essential to overcoming the current economic crisis i... more A strong VET system is increasingly seen as essential to overcoming the current economic crisis in Europe. VET is seen as a powerful tool to assist in balancing labour market inefficiencies, increasing youth employment possibilities, and reducing skills mismatch. Its inherent flexibility and closeness to the labour market place VET in a good position to contribute to a faster economic recovery and long-term sustainable development. However, crucial for this role is continuous and systematic VET renewal that assures its relevance for the labour market. This publication explores 15 European national approaches to feedback mechanisms between VET and the labour market. It illustrates the diversity of solutions currently applied across Europe and how they are embedded in national traditions and education philosophy. The study asks three fundamental questions: how inclusive are national mechanisms for feedback between the VET system and the labour market; how responsive are existing mecha...

Estonia on the backdrop of the European Union states: country-specific institutional context and lifelong learning

Studies for the Learning Society, 2008

Globalization, Uncertainty and Women’s Careers, 2006

Journal of Education and Work, 2013

Since the 1980s, growing globalisation and economic restructuring coupled with expansion of terti... more Since the 1980s, growing globalisation and economic restructuring coupled with expansion of tertiary education contributed to tremendous change in the labour market entry process in Europe. Most previous studies have been quantitative, concentrated on the supply aspect and analysed the role of education as the explanatory variable of youth labour market outcome equations. By contrast, the demand aspect has gained less attention. In this paper, using Estonia as a case study in both perspectivesemployers' practices and graduates' experiencesare combined to answer the question: how employers use information provided by tertiary education credentials in the recruitment process. Semi-structured interviews with the 15 biggest employers and focus groups consisting of 63 recent graduates comprise the base data of our study. The results reveal that it is useful to examine the mechanisms why education affects recruitment processes separately among service providers and goods producers as well as in different stages of recruitment (pre-selection, getting a job offer). In all sectors, the educational credentials were used in the pre-selection process as a screening device. However, in a job offer, service providers emphasised the role of credentials as signals of trainability while for goods producers credentials informed employers about their job-specific skills.

Ethnic Relations in Estonia’s Post-Soviet Business Community

Ethnicities, 2003

Page 1. Ethnic relations in Estonia's post-Soviet business community REIN VÖÖRMANN AND JELEN... more Page 1. Ethnic relations in Estonia's post-Soviet business community REIN VÖÖRMANN AND JELENA HELEMÄE Tallinn Pedagogical University, Estonia ABSTRACT The central focus of this paper is an analysis of the problems ...

Globalized Labour Markets and Social Inequality in Europe, 2011