"Education auction": Self-differentiation effort of educated labor from the perspective of the new capitalism

This study argues that educated labor, trying to hold on in the labor market, is compelled to make new educational choices in the education field, which has turned into an auction area. This qualitative study aims to understand, make sense of, and interpret the new educational experiences of educated labor aged 35-54 who have experienced precarious employment or unemployment in the private sector, from the perspective of the new capitalism. In this qualitative study, the interpretative phenomenological analysis was used with nineteen persons, resulting in six major-themes, twenty emergent-themes, and seventy categories. From the study data, it is concluded that educated labor embraces education from childhood, learns about competition through their success in education, is employed through their education, competes for employability and career in working life, and is motivated by the need to continuously reproduce their human capital. In this context, it is concluded that educated labor chooses a new education program from the education auction based on market-oriented strategic cost analysis. Finally, it is concluded that educated labor believes that they differentiate themselves from their competitors with a new educational experience in competition, position themselves as neo-educated labor, and attempt to protect their diminishing bargaining power in the labor market through a new educational experience. In conclusion, this study indicates that in the labor market of the new capitalism, educated labor contributes to intensifying competition through a new educational experience, thereby widening the gap between existing inequalities by creating new inequalities.