Socio-Technical Issues in Youth Employment in SMEs: The Case of the Furniture Sector in Turkey

This chapter investigates how technological developments implemented in the production processes and organizational structures of small and medium sized enterprises affect the skills and therefore the employment of young workers in these businesses. The furniture sector in the greater region of Ankara in Turkey is explored in this chapter because it is one of the fastest growing sectors in the new millennium, and the rate of youth employment is very high. Young workers face severe problems due to the technological developments and organizational changes occurring in these enterprises. Many of them are either removed from production processes or dismissed from the company. To have a decent job, the young generation working in this sector should not be alienated from the production process. It is claimed that this major problem of bias towards young workers can be solved by a proper education, which will greatly increase their technical skills.