Company-based vocational education and training: Case studies of shipbuilding industries in Japan and Sweden

In this paper we analyze the motives, functioning, and results of vocational education and training in two companies in the shipbuilding industry in two different countries (Japan and Sweden) in different time periods. The institutional framework differs substantially in the two cases and, partly as a consequence, the responses to challenges in securing an adequate supply often varied. However, our results indicate that not only was training important for supplying the companies with skilled labor, but also that it was crucial to creating career ladders for workers. This helped to develop company loyalty, which was important for retaining skilled workers.