Youth Unemployment Crisis and Neets

     The number of unemployed youth has grown by four million since 2007. More alarming is that millions more disconnected youth are giving up searching for a job entirely. The global youth jobless rate is stuck at critical levels and is expected to remain there until at least 2016, according to the International Labour Organization. Of primary concern are young people who are neither in employment, nor in education or training - referred to in many countries as Neet. An article posted on the theglobeandmail.com discusses this segment of the population as one that has been growing in recent years, especially in the developed world, reflecting a detachment from the labour market.

     The Neet group is not a uniform set of individuals. The term refers to different groups of people depending on the country in which it is used. For example, in the United Kingdom the classification comprises of people aged between 16 and 24; while in Japan the classification refers to people who are between 15 and 34. Also in Japan it refers to individuals who are unemployed, not engaged in housework, not enrolled in school or work-related training, and not seeking work.In fact the term can refer to those who are highly educated and unable to find work, as well as those who have no education and are unwilling or unable to work. It is a broad definition that is impossible to categorize aside from general age guidelines. No matter the variables it's a growing concern for governments and policy-makers, especially in light of the current unemployment crisis.

A young woman is pulled away from Madrid's Puerta del Sol plaza last week as police broke up protests against austerity and unemployment that has hit one out of every four citizens in Spain. (Alberto Di Lolli / AP)

     There exists a negative stigmata surrounding the term Neet because it classifies a person as having no status. Simon Cox of BBC News said the word is the "latest buzzword for teenage dropouts". He says "Neets are 20 per cent more likely to commit a crime and 22 per cent more likely to become a teenage mother." Canada is not immune to this growing problem. According to Statistics Canada there are almost 904,000 Neets in the country. In fact, every developed country has seen an increase in the number of youth belonging to this group. It's not a new phenomenon but is made much more alarming because of the youth unemployment crisis, which makes battling the growth of Neets a primary concern of policy-makers.

Neets in England - how many young people are not in Employment, Education or Training? (Alex Segre / Rex Features)

     In 2011 Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, promoted a government scheme (not a negative term in the UK) to help prevent another "lost generation" of young jobless people. The initiative was designed to provide opportunities including job subsidies, apprenticeships and work experience placement for 500,000 unemployed people. The government agreed to subsidize 160,000 work places by offering money to any private sector business who was willing to hire an unemployed person aged 18 to 24 years old. Those who were hired were paid minimum wage but had to complete their placement of six months or they would be refused benefits, a threat which caused an uproar once it was announced. The stipulation has since been revoked because of threats by businesses involved in the scheme. For the full story click here.

Nick Clegg meets apprentices at decorating firm in London. He describes the million young people not in education, employment or training as a 'ticking time bomb'. (Stefan Rousseau / PA)

     Clegg's youth job scheme has also been criticized because it overlaps with over 30 other Government funding schemes to help the youth find work. It also runs through a number of different agencies, causing many officials to worry that participants may fall through the cracks and become more disengaged. In fact, the government has come under pressure from the shop workers' union to end long-term, unpaid labour for young unemployed people. John Hannett, the general secretary for the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, says that schemes should be voluntary, participants should receive the rate for the job, and there needs to be "transparent checks and balances in place". 

Britain faces a crisis in its communities unless it tackles high levels of youth unemployment, a report warns. Young Neets are documented to cost the economy 56,000 pounds each. (REX)

     The United States has also seen an increase in the number of Neet youth. A new report by the Population Reference Bureau shows that the percentage of young men ages 25 to 34 who are neither working nor attending school increased sharply between 2007 and 2010, from 14 per cent to 19 per cent. During the same period, the share of women who were not working or going to school remained steady at 26 per cent. The gender differences are explained by women's earlier age of marriage, compared with men. The report states that the decline in the economic prospects of youth has several negative consequences including; further declines in marriage and childbearing, young people living with their parents longer, and greater income inequality amoung generations.

According to Stats Canada, men in their 20s have the hardest time finding work. They account for 200,000 of the 391,000 Neet youth who are seeking a job. (Thinkstock)

     Josh Dehaas recently wrote a story on Macleans.com which discussed the growing number of unemployed and out of school youth in Canada. In the article he compares the country with other G7 countries. Dehaas writes that "while 904,000 Neets is worrisome, Canada has fewer per capita than other G7 countries including France and the UK (15.6 per cent), the United States (16.9 per cent) and Italy (21.2 per cent). Germany is the exception, which sits at only 11.6 per cent of 15 to 29 years are Neets." While the number in Canada is still alarmingly high, studies show that those willing to look for work typically found it within six months.

Data from Canada and Mexico refer to the December 2010 quarter. Data for Australia and New Zealand are for the June 2011 quarter. All other countries are for the March 2011 quarter. All data is unadjusted and provisional. (OECD) 

     The youth unemployment crisis has been made much more dire because of the rise in Neets around the world. This subgroup in society has been identified as at risk for destructive behaivour, which has many officials alarmed due to the growing number of youth identified in this category. The possibility of a disconnect from the labour market is also a concern, as is the likelihood that a delay in entering the workforce will have a negative impact on future earnings. Tomorrow is the fifth in a five-part series examining the youth unemployment crisis. In the last entry, I will talk about job market trends in 2012 and provide a number of well-documented ideas to ensure that you are able to best promote yourself.