Are higher ability garment workers more likely to participate in industrial skills training in Cambodia?

ABSTRACT Understanding what determines a worker’s passion for skills training has important policy implications, particularly in the current context of the fourth industrial revolution, in which knowledge is deemed obsolete within several years. The purpose of this study is to answer a specific question: are higher-ability garment workers more likely to engage in industrial skills training? To do so, we use a dataset with a final sample of 787 garment workers in Cambodia. We apply logit and cluster-standard-error Ordinary Least Square regression with the intention to participate in skills training as a dependent variable on worker ability levels, which we constructed using a series of questions adapted from the OECD’s Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies. Holding other things constant such as education, we found that workers with more ability are more likely to participate in skills training, while worker income is not a significant predictor.