There is no doubt that our current coalition government is facing an extremely difficult set of circumstances at present. As they strive to keep the nation from the jaws of recession and economic growth continues to splutter like a smoker during a marathon, imagine their consternation last week when it was revealed that more than 1 million of UK citizens aged between 18 and 24 were officially unemployed. Not only this, but according to a recent survey the Great British Public also believe that they are not doing enough to combat youth employment and encourage young adults into work.
In the survey carried out by RecruitmentGenius.com, it was revealed that 58% of 597 UK respondents believed that the government was not doing enough to reduce youth unemployment. Broken down further, 66% of those aged over 55 felt that the government needed to do more, whereas just 52% of those aged between 18 and 34 shared the same belief. In essence it is those with a greater experience of employment markets who feel that the coalition are lacking in both insight and application, whereas those who are afflicted by high youth unemployment seem more oblivious to their plight.
The Key Areas of Concern
The frustrating thing for the government of course is that while surveys generally reveal where they are going wrong, they do not offer practical advice which may help resolve the issue. Their first port of call must be to address the core issues, and more specifically where there are gaps between young adults skills and knowledge and the job vacancies of today:
- Expectation: School, college and university does not give an accurate reflection of working life, and this is supported by the high number of graduates who struggle to find or adapt to the work place once they have qualified.
- Ambition: Similarly, there is a widening chasm between the roles that youngsters covet and those which are available in the current employment markets. This translates into the skills they acquire, and leaves them under equipped to find work in a struggling economy.
- Environment: With case studies showing that individuals have been able to live comfortable if modest lifestyles while living on job seekers allowance and other benefits for years, then do we live in an environment where is crucial to enable us to live and enjoy specific privileges?
How Can the Government Tackle These Issues?
With a set of potential problems identified, the governments hardest challenge is to solve them. One thing is for sure, to tackle such a significant problem of youth unemployment they must be willing to be inventive and turn radical concepts into practical applications to get young adults into work: -
- It is time for schools and educational bodies to place a greater emphasis on work experience. Perhaps they could consider introducing relevant placements to younger students, or increasing the amount of time that students spend in a work place learning about the professional environment.
- Although we live in a free society, there is nothing wrong in the government and parents taking a student or their child in hand and encouraging them into thriving industries. Changing the curriculum to reflect evolving markets is an option, as for example many youngsters continue to want to work in the traditional media industry despite it falling victim to online growth and mobile technology advancements.
- There have been calls to reduce benefits and adapt the system for years, but no government has yet to put tangible ideas into action. Coercing young and long term job seekers into voluntary placements would be a positive step, certainly in terms of teaching the value of work and how job satisfaction creates a sense of worth.
Do you have any ideas on how to reduce youth unemployment? Please let us know your thoughts or tweets to @simplyhireduk.