The recent recession in the European Union has hit many economies and Ireland’s has been the worst hit. Recession spawned a chain of likely economic crisis that left many lives shattered. Most affected of all were the working classes. Jobs were lost, firms closed and many sat home without any income source. The young generation, under the age of 25, was badly hit by the recession as well. Sectors where young people were employed, like construction, retail and services dismissed thousands of individuals from their jobs with the recession’s approach. This coupled with the fact that there were more than a million individuals already unemployed before the recession arrived; create a bleak scenario for both the job seekers, he employers and the authorities. The worst hit of all were the job seekers and the working classes. The events that took shape then have left the economy of Ireland weekend, and its young generation highly dissatisfied. Statistics as of June 2010 reveal that there are nearly 92,000 young people living in Ireland according to the Live Register and out of every 3 young men under the age of 25, 1 is unemployed. The problem has worsened with individuals who were left unemployed during the recession re-entering the markets and industries leaving little or no vacancy for the freshly graduated or the young men and women who have yet to enter their first job. An article on the website of National Youth Council (2013) of Ireland reports that the numbers of young people under 25 emigrating increased from 15,600 in 2004 to 30,000 in 2009. The following article discusses about the problem of Youth Unemployment in Ireland, what the youth demands from the authorities and what the authorities are planning to remedy this crisis.
Youth unemployment proportions are generally much greater than unemployment rates in the general sense. Till the late 2008, the youth unemployment rate in the EU-27 was recorded to be nearly twice as high as that for the population in the total and reaching a minimum value (18.1 %) in the first three months of 2008. The recession crisis, however, has apparently hit the young especially between ages 16 and 25 more than other age groups. Beginning from the year 2009, the widening gap between youth and total unemployment rates has consistently increased, due to which at the end of 2012 youth unemployment rate amounted to 2.6 times the total unemployment rate.
Increasing youth unemployment rates reflects the problems faced by young people in getting employed. However, this does not essentially mean that the stats of unemployment for young persons aged between 15 and 24 are huge. This is because a large number of young people are involved in studying full-time courses and therefore neither can be counted as working nor as prospective job seekers as full-time students are not part of the labour force which is used as the denominator for calculating the unemployment rate (Eurostat, 2013). Due to this reason, youth unemployment proportions and ratios are calculated according to a slightly different concept: the youth unemployment ratio is calculated based on the share of unemployed individuals for the population as a whole.
The problem has two completely different perspectives, one of the youth and the second of the legislature. The issue becomes a part of a heated debate between the two camps and each presents different points of view over the topic, but both agree that a solution to the problem must be found and each tries to suggest them to the other. However it boils down to the fact that youth are the people who will have to bear the actions of the either and a strategy of balance is needed if the future of the youth of Ireland has to be saved.
In the same introductory report the National Youth Council reports that the youth acknowledges the fact that the authorities do not function to create jobs for them alone and have more crucial tasks at hand. However, it is the primary duty of the authorities to create conditions that can increase the chances of employment in the country and to make sure that current and future jobseekers have the right set of skills and qualifications so that they can avail opportunities as they come. The youth today also voice the fact that there are no simple or rapid solutions to the present situation of unemployment, but there is a scope of a lot of efforts and methods that can be used to cure the nation of this problem. There is a general belief that all of the responses of the authorities so far lacked the confidence and the promise of co-ordination and the activities the Government have undertaken so far to solve the issue have been ineffective due to reasons like lack of resources, scale and ingenuity of thought that goes into dealing with this problem, especially in the present day situation of youth unemployment. The youth is also worried that hasty actions undertaken by the authorities may marginalize the young and unemployed and lead them into worse economic conditions. These strategies and policies should be well thought and creative enough to help create long term employment opportunities for the young job seekers and should be effective enough to bring the necessary changes.
The youth have some clear cut demands from the Government. The first is a promise political responsibility for the remedy of youth unemployment and an all-encompassing strategy that is in synch with the current needs and yet comprehensive. The second is the reversal of social cutbacks levied on social welfare to young job seekers. The major concern for the youth about their unemployment is the impact the issue may have on their career profile. They propose a job strategy for the youth at national level, a jobs stimulus, major investment in the Youth Guarantee Scheme, a legal framework and better regulation of work placement. The youth also wants creation of new career information services and a nationwide review of skills that the youth have or need to have in order to be eligible for employment.
The present situation as described in various Youth Council reports report an insufficient political leadership, especially on the issue of youth unemployment. A Minster who takes overall charge of directing the effort is needed (McBride, 2010). Some young people are forced to take up education and training that is of little or no relevance to them just so that their qualifications remain valid. However, majority of the young need a job and a valid work experience and not advanced education or training alone. And for that very reason many take to migration. USI President Joe O'Connor noted that 35,000 young people had emigrated last year, while a further 65,000 remain unemployed in Ireland (RTE News b, 2013).
The Government as a recompense introduced unemployment funds like the Jobseekers Allowance. This allowance was aimed at people who had lost their job or were unable to get into a job after they completed their formal education. However, the move was surrounded with controversy and there was much speculation regarding individuals who misused this facility. This resulted in a cut in the allowances for individuals aged below 26. “This is not just a problem” says Joan Burton TD, Minister for Social Protection as an answer to the announcement of the cuts. She explains further, “It's an existential crisis for the European Union. The economic cost has been estimated at more than €150bn a year, or 1.2 per cent of EU GDP.” The announcement of the cut came as a shock and was altogether rejected as a completely wrong decision. The cut in jobseeker’s allowance for those under 26 won’t nudge young people into “valuable training” in JobsBridge or other schemes, it will push them into poverty and emigration, wrote Andrew Byrne and Dan Hayden. Furthermore schemes like JobsBridge seems more like an incentive program for employers rather than a source of experience through internship for the youth (RTE News a, 2013).
The reaction comes naturally as nearly 30% of the youth in Ireland is unemployed, according to OECD stats, the highest in the European Union. However, economists and the OECD believe that a significant amount of money allotted for labour markets following international standards is spent on passive policies like the Jobseeker’s Allowance, rather than being spent on sectors that can create more jobs for the people. The OECD also suggests stricter follow up rules for applicants to such policies especially for the youth and expanding active policies to the “detriment” of the passive ones.
But the suggestion of providing skill development and training comes with a huge objection from the unemployed youth who find it as a lock up to job markets. Their demands as discussed earlier in this article are to get jobs and gain experience because unemployment in the initial stages of one’s career may result in unemployment later as well. The youth is concerned that with the widening gap between jobs created and number of job seekers.
No matter how difficult the situation may seem, the youth and the Government need time to settle down and chalk out a mutual understanding of each other’s demands and requirements. In other words, there is a need for mutual understanding and the formulation of a general measure that can begin to solve the crisis. Experimentation is not an option as the time taken by the authorities to sort out the crisis culminated in more and more unemployment. The previous policies have proved ineffective in controlling the gradually growing unemployment of the youth, which has led to a widespread cry of dissatisfaction. Today the youth unemployment ratio stands at 32% as quoted by the Minister for Social Protection. This percentage may rise if nothing is done at the earliest.
A crisis like this requires time to settle, and patience is required to help solve long standing issues like Youth Unemployment. The youth needs assurance that something is being done for their welfare, and that may not come from extended periods of training. What they need is a substantial employment opportunity and a future that they may look upto.
References
Burton TD, J. (6 February, 2013). We must give hope to Europe’s youth: Irish Minister for Social Protection discusses the Youth Guarantee. Archive EU2013.ie. Retrieved from http://eu2013.ie/news/news-items/20130206burtonoped/
Eurostat (August, 2013). Unemployment Statistics. European Commission. Retrieved from http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Unemployment_statistics
McBride, Orlaith ()Youth Unemployment In Ireland: The Forgotten Generation. National Youth Council Ireland. Retrieved from http://www.youth.ie/forgotten
NYCI (n.d.). Youth Unemployment. Advocacy. National Youth Council Ireland. Retrieved from http://www.youth.ie/advocacy/youth_unemployment
RTE News a (12 September, 2013). OECD says Government must do more to tackle youth unemployment and long-term joblessness. Retrieved from http://www.rte.ie/news/business/2013/0402/379391-european-unemployment-young/
RTE News b (5 September, 2013). Student groups want youth unemployment addressed. Retrieved from http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0905/472421-student-groups-demand-jobless-strategy/
The Journal (17 October, 2013). Column: The exploitation of people has been cemented by the government. Comments. http://www.thejournal.ie/youth-unemployment/news/
