Europe's young and unemployed

Oct 04

Episode

Europe's young and unemployed

A ‘lost generation’ calls the future into question.

One out of every five European youths is looking for work. The statistics in Greece and Spain are even more grim, where youth unemployment rates hover around 50 per cent. What often results is rising crime, high occurrences of depression, decreased birth rates, and increased emigration.

To address the problem, the European Union is reallocating billions of dollars for various programmes. Italy is giving tax breaks to companies for new hires, while Spain has offered loans to youth who want to start a business. But will this be enough?

In this episode of The Stream, we speak to:

Jacob Kirkegaard @PIIE_com
Peterson Institute for International Economics
piie.com

Laszlo Andor @LaszloAndorEU
European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion

Members of The Stream community also join us via Google+.

What do you think? What’s the solution to Europe’s youth unemployment problem? Send us your comments on Twitter using #AJStream.

View the story "Europe's young and unemployed" on StorifyEurope's young and unemployedA ‘lost generation’ calls the future into question.Storified by The Stream · Thu, Oct 04 2012 10:42:28

Below is a comparison of youth unemployment in Europe and the US between the summer of 2011 and 2012:

via theatlantic.comAJstreamThis infographic displays employment and wages in various countries in the European Union:undefinedNetdna-cdn

As a response, the European Commission started a program in May 2011 to aid youth in gaining access to the job market. The pilot project, titled Your first EURES job, aims to help youth in obtaining employment within another EU country.

Below is a video highlighting the benefits of participating in the program:

Your first job is closer than you think!euresjobThe EU will also allocate approximately $3.5 billion (€2.7 billion) of additional structuralfunds to deal with unemployment of youth, added to the already $9.5 billion (€7.3billion) already spent. This is part of the EU's Youth Opportunities Initiative,which created pilot programmes in eight EU countries with thehighest levels of unemployment among youth: Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, Ireland and Latvia. The initiative targets recent secondary school and university graduates, who often lack work experience.

Below is a video highlighting the initiatives of the Youth Opportunities Initiative.

Youth Opportunities InitiativeeutubeHowever, some youth are unsatisfied with the measures taken by the EU. InSpain, for example, an organization named JuventudSin Futuro (Youth Without a Future) was created to represent unemployed youth in the face of what many perceive as government inaction.

Their website displays the following image, with theslogan "We should not, we do not pay! Citizen Debt Audit".

via juventudsinfuturo.netAJstreamThe sentiment has been felt throughout the EU. A citizen from Greece tweets: "National loneliness. National unemployment. National depression. At least we've got patriotic misery".
Εθνική μοναξιά. Εθνική ανεργία. Εθνική κατάθλιψη. Τουλάχιστον πήραμε πατριωτικά τη δυστυχία.UrticaA student in the UK expresses her worry about searching for jobs after completing school:Not looking forward to the impending doom of graduation. I hope this year repeats itself Groundhog Day style. #YouthUnemploymentLauren StaffordA German Twitter user posts this photo of youth protests in Spain, including a poster with the words, "Today it's us, tomorrow it can be you".RT @Svenceremos: Plakat: "Heute sind es wir, morgen kann es dich treffen" http://yfrog.com/hwrjjmnj #MarchaDesempleados #spanishrevolution #A ...Krabat44Other EU countries have also experienced protests by unemployed youth. Here's Al Jazeera's coverage of the recent anti-austerity protests in Spain:Protesters clash with police in SpainduniyakikhabrainBelow is a photo of anti-austerity protests in Portugal:
DRY InternationalAJstreamEarlier in the year, French youth held similar anti-austerity demonstrations:Manifestation anti austérité Paris 29.02.2012govdaableSome argue that the situation might not be as bad as statistics suggest. News outlets often cite a country's unemployment rate, which includes students who are not actively looking for work as unemployed. Most economists refer instead to the unemployment ratio, meaning the number of job-seeking youth in comparison to the total population aged 16-24.
Below is a able depicting comparisons of unemployment ratio vs. rate in EU countries:EurostatAJstreamPolitical writer Steven Hill claims that when considering unemployment ratios, as opposed to rates, the EU's situation is not as dire as headlines might suggest.To be sure, a youth unemployment ratio of 13% or 19% is not grounds for complacency. But, while the eurozone’s youth unemployment rate has increased since 2009, its ratio has remained the same (though both significantly exceed pre-2008 levels).The Mirage of Youth Unemployment by Steven Hill - Project SyndicatePolicymakers do, of course, need to address the problem of youth unemployment; but they must also acknowledge that the problem is not as serious as the headlines indicate.The Mirage of Youth Unemployment by Steven Hill - Project Syndicate