Youth Unemployment in Europe

Youth Unemployment in Europe

The research and following facts were done by participants of Youth in Action Exchange Back to the Future of the following countries: Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Greece, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria and France. The unemployment of youth is becoming a major problem in Europe and the percentage of youth unemployment is constantly growing.  Youth under 30 is currently 35% of European population.

The following graph shows the approximate percentage of youth unemployment in selected European countries.

Summary of the research made by participants follows.

Bulgaria

-          Minimum salary 160 EUR

-          9000 young Bulgarians work abroad to have a higher salary

-          Big requirements for a low paid job

-          Lot of people work on a black market

Czech Republic

-         Government measures to defeat unemployment: financial support to employers, higher attention to find job for graduates, finances from EU Social Fund – projects to strengthen employment, graduates get priority for requalification, job consulting

France

-          Minimum salary 1000 EUR (35 working hours a week)

-          People in productive age - 28 million

-          2.6 million (9%) unemployed (registered in National Center for Unemployment) + 3 million unemployed (not registered in NCU and working on a black market)

-          Job Contracts for youngsters – Internships (15 days in a company with the chance of getting full-time job afterwards), Apprenticeships (1 year - 1 week in school & 1 week working – degree afterwards), Insertion Contract (Government support of companies and NGOs to employ inexperienced youngsters)

Greece

-          40% of graduates are leaving the country

-          Politicians don’t focus on helping young people to deal with this situation

-          Lower quality of education, trainings, job seeking

-          Economical situation affects unemployment of young people

-          Minimum salary 580 EUR

Hungary

-          How government deals with the situation – courses, start card, unemployment aid, job search help

-          Minimum salary 290 EUR

-          Lot of university graduates go abroad and do low-skilled jobs

-          Studies have no connection with labor market and companies

-          Lot of graduates of law, journalism and other humanities major – not enough blue collar workers

Italy

-          March 2010 unemployment rate 27.7% of 15-24 year old (source ISTAS)

-          March 2009 unemployment rate 24.8% of 15-24 year old (source ISTAS)

-          Inactivity rate 37.6% in Italy (Europe 28.9%) (source Labor Force Survey Data, July 2008)

-          Second Language Knowledge – Northwest Italy 62.9%, Northeast Italy 62.4%, South Italy 48.5%, Islands 51.4%

Latvia

-          Minimum salary 230 EUR

-          Hard to find a job for women after 30 (people with high education have no job)

Lithuania

-          Minimum salary 300 EUR

-          Results of unemployment: emigration, suicide, theft, divorces, poverty

Poland

-          Main reasons for unemployment: lack of qualified people in trades and crafts, labor market is not stable, lots of young people have degree in arts – not enough engineering and science graduates, demographic decrease

-          Government measures to decrease unemployment: foreign investments, special economic zones, lot of youngsters working abroad, support and trainings

Romania

-          Minimum salary 160 EUR

-          Many people who worked for state lost their jobs because of the crisis

-          September 2011 Nokia factory left country (2000 lost a job, 1.8 bn EUR in losses a year)

-          Lot of people work on black market

-          New national project to create jobs – extracting gold from Rosia Montana