Lessons from Northern Europe for the UK on Youth Unemployment

I wrote a post called Sharing the Work Around (on 14 June) about my concern that many young people find it very difficult to get into any kind of suitable work whilst others are working very hard, either to hang onto a job or because 'effcieincies' mean they are struggling to get the job done.  Then there are a few who seem to take disproportionate rewards for the work they do whilst others struggle to make ends meet.

I came across an article the other day, which, whilst it doesn't attempt to answer these 'big' questions, none the less raises serious concerns about the way we as a country manage the transition for young people between education and work, and why it can take so long for a young person to get to a secure and suitable job.

The research on which it is based arises from a collaboration between the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development the TUC and IPPR (the Institute for Public Policy Research) and looks at the levels of youth unemployment in this country and compares with other European countries, north and south.  What it finds is that notwithstanding the effects of economic turbulence, there are major difference in countries that invest in high quality vocational education (that is not seen as a poor second to the academic stream) over an extended period and who provide good quality work experience.  There are lessons that can be learned from why Germany and some of the Nordic countries d not have the levels of youth unemployment and insecurity that the UK does.

It points to some reasons why the UK has not been so good at this, but the overall conclusion I draw is that there is a cost in this investment that would be difficult against the current economic backdrop and currently prevailing attitudes, but if we want to reap the benefit of that investment in the future we have got to look seriously at it.  Otherwise, we will go on complaining and, more seriously, we will damage the futures of many of our young people.

The article can be found here.  There is a one page summary at the beginning, but I think the whole article repays attention.