Social partners seek action on youth unemployment

In August 2009, the UK government published figures showing that the number of 18–24-year-olds in the UK not in education, employment or training rose steeply in the second quarter of 2009. Both the Trades Union Congress and the Confederation of British Industry have called on the government to fund extra youth apprenticeships to help tackle the problem, while the employer body has developed a five-point plan to tackle youth unemployment.

New statistics published

On 18 August 2009, the UK’s Department for Children, School and Families (DCSF) published statistics revealing that the number of young people aged 18–24 years in the UK who are ‘not in education, employment or training’ (so-called ‘NEETs’) had risen to 835,000 persons in the second quarter of 2009. The figure for the first quarter of 2009 was 827,000 young people, compared with 755,000 persons in the fourth quarter of 2008. Previously, concern has also been expressed by the UK social partners about the effect of the economic crisis on youth unemployment (UK0812039I).

The number of 16–18-year-old NEETs has also risen from 220,000 persons in the first quarter of 2009 to 233,000 persons in the second quarter of 2009. Although no comprehensive regional data is available, the three regions of the UK most affected by the phenomenon of NEETs appear to be Northeast England, Northwest England, as well as Yorkshire and Humber.

Social partner reactions

The main UK social partner organisations reacted with concern to the publication of the government statistics.

In response to the figures, the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Brendan Barber, commented:

We cannot afford to lose another generation of young people to unemployment and underachievement…We need more employers to take on apprentices and the government must ensure its guarantee of training or work for young people out of work continues to be well funded, as demand will be high. NEETs are likely to have low skills and poor experience so the training and work on offer must be meaningful. Otherwise, it will just be a stopgap before they fall further into unemployment.

The Director of Education and Skills Policy at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Susan Anderson, stated:

The number of 18 to 24-year-olds not in employment, education or training has risen to record levels, and will continue to rise. We know from the 1980s recession that unemployment scars the lives of young people – so they need our support. This can include apprenticeships, internships or volunteering opportunities.

CBI’s five-point plan

In a parallel development, the CBI has also proposed a five-point plan to fight youth unemployment. This was issued on 24 August 2009 and included the following points:

• allocating a quarter of the government’s GBP 500 million (€571 million as at 8 September 2009) recruitment subsidy fund to subsidising 50,000 new apprenticeships. The CBI proposes a subsidy of GBP 2,500 (€2,855) for companies that offer additional apprenticeships to young people, or employ an apprentice for the first time. It also recommends creating a separate GBP 25 million (€28.5 million) fund to encourage companies to train more apprentices than they need to improve employability elsewhere in the sector;

• the setting of wages at levels that make employing young workers attractive to companies. The CBI argues that high youth minimum wages and apprentice rates can have an adverse effect on the employment prospects of young workers, and therefore takes the position that wage rates for these groups of workers should be sensitive to this threat;

• practical help for young people to find a job. The CBI suggests that universities, career guidance services and employers should do more to help students find an internship, volunteer work or job;

• an increase in work experience opportunities. The CBI underlines the importance of employers offering work experience schemes to young people;

• an emphasis of the teaching of basic skills in the education system. The CBI considers that it is imperative that all young people have basic numeracy and literacy skills, and that schools and colleges should also emphasise ‘employability skills’ such as communication skills and self-management.

Commentary

The problem of youth unemployment in the UK has clearly been exacerbated by the economic crisis, and the effects of the crisis also appear to have hit young workers harder than other groups. Indeed, according to unemployment figures published in August 2009, unemployment among 16–25-year-olds reaches up to 30% in many regions of the UK. Given concerns in policy circles about anti-social behaviour and social cohesion in UK society, the rise in youth unemployment is particularly likely to worry policymakers. Furthermore, as the UK social partners’ calls to the government demonstrate, it is a topic that is likely to attract increasing attention in the coming months.

Thomas Prosser, IRRU, University of Warwick