In Foucauldian terms, subsuming ethical understanding in a framework of employability
skills is indicative of the ‘extension of the economy to the entire social field…
(and the) “compensating for what is cold, impassive, calculating, rational, and mechanical in the strictly economic game of competition”’ (Foucault, 2004, p. 242).
Constructions, such as ‘ethical understanding’ or ‘interpersonal relations’ can be seen as the ‘softer side’ of the rational and competition-focused notion of maximising and taking advantage of opportunities. Consistent with Foucault’s neoliberalism, the placement of a range of disparate generic skills, some of which may be considered social in nature and outside the realm of employment or economics, as employability skills signifies the ‘eliding of any difference between the economy and the social’ (Lemke, 2001, p. 7). While an economic game is being played out, ultimately about preparing students for the world of work, the inclusion of ‘soft’ and seemingly related capabilities ensures that the student is not ‘alienated from his work environment, from the time of his life; from his household, his family and from the natural environment’ (Foucault, 2004, p. 242). Individuals are subjectivised in accordance with the acquisition of employability skills throughout the documents.
Kevin Gormley (2020) Neoliberalism and the discursive construction of
‘creativity’, Critical Studies in Education, 61:3, 313-328, DOI: 10.1080/17508487.2018.1459762