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Issue No 22
July 2012

How can we help our young people get into employment?


Greetings!   

 

This month's newsletter is all about employing young people. The current unemployment rate, particularly of young people, is something which is frequently scrutinised by the media. The government are keen to cut down the number of "Neets" (young people "not in education, employment or training") following statistics showing that the UK is seeing its highest ever youth unemployment rate. With this added pressure the government are placing increasing responsibility on organisations to offer work experience placements and training schemes to 16-24 year olds who are not in work. This article will explore the comparison between youth unemployment in the UK and in other European countries; how the government are working to put more young people into employment and what responsibilities different organisations have in helping to bring about that change.

 

 

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What responsibility do we have to employ young people?

In the UK there are currently 1,163,000 young people classified as "Neet". The reasons behind this extremely high figure are not only a result of the economic climate but for many young people there are social factors holding them back. For example, those growing up in poverty may not have had the encouragement and opportunity available to others. Many of the young unemployed in the UK have left school with little or no qualifications and have no transferable skills to demonstrate in a working environment. This means the education system is leaving them unemployable. In other European countries where the youth unemployment rate is low there are transition systems in place to support young people as they leave school and enter the world of work. For instance, in Germany organisations offer apprenticeships and vocational qualifications that provide a route into the working world as an alternative to studying at university. This allows young people to gain good qualifications and skills that they can use for the rest of their working lives and therefore results in a lower youth unemployment rate. Whilst there are similar schemes available in the UK, this type of qualification is a lot less respected and organisations are much more likely to employ an older, more experienced worker over a young person with only a vocational qualification to their name (According to Lanning, 2012).

 

Government schemes to reduce the number of "Neets"

 

The government are under pressure to improve these record breaking unemployment figures. A recent scheme launched by Nick Clegg aims to decrease the number of "Neets". In this scheme organisations will be rewarded up to �2,200 for every young person they mentor and encourage in to work. It will focus specifically on 16-17 year olds without GCSEs. The scheme has been criticised by many, including the ATL teachers' union and the Labour Party. Liam Byrne of the Labour Party has said "He promised big answers to the problem of youth unemployment yet what we have got today is something that won't help 95% of Britain's young unemployed. This is much too small and much too late".

 

What can organisations do to help?

 

Whilst the youth unemployment rate is at a record high there is more responsibility placed on organisations to get involved and help. The main problem is that employers can't afford to pay unqualified young people in training and young people can't afford to do unpaid work. The easiest solution is for organisations to offer work experience to students whilst they are still in education. This would require organisations to be flexible with their working hours so students can fit it around their studies. Companies can also increase the length of their internships so enough experience can be gained to carry into future work. An incentive for young people to work hard and be reliable would be for organisations to offer a permanent position at the end of an internship. This would not only result in well qualified, experienced young individuals but also cut the numbers of unemployed young people.

Further reading:

Tess Lanning talks here about youth unemployment in Europe and what makes a labour market youth friendly:

BBC News article on Nick Clegg's �126m Youth Contract:

One of our guest bloggers discusses apprenticeships:


If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us either by emailing [email protected] or calling 01273 590232.
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