OECD, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Engaging younger generations: the future of ESCs Annual meeting of Presidents and Secretaries-general of European ESCs The Hague, 9-10 November 2011 OFF TO A GOOD START? LESSONS FROM THE OECD’S JOBS FOR YOUTH REVIEWS Anne Sonnet Senior Economist Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD

JOBS for YOUTH Review of 16 countries in  9 EU countries: Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Netherlands, Poland, Slovak Republic, Spain and United Kingdom  7 non-EU countries: Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea, Norway, New Zealand and United States Main Outputs 16 country reports and a Synthesis report in December 2010 Off to a Good Start? Jobs for Youth Jointly with the ILO, Giving Youth a Better Start, A report for the G-20 Employment and Labour Ministerial Meeting, Paris, September

Youth face a much higher unemployment risk than adults 3 Ratio of the youth a to adult (25-54) unemployment rate, 2009 As a percentage of the corresponding labour force a) Persons aged (16-24 in Iceland, Spain, Sweden, UK and US). Source: National labour force surveys.

Youth employment on a declining trend in many OECD countries over the last decade Youth a employment rate, 2000 and 2010 As a percentage of the population aged 15/16-24 a) Persons aged (16-24 in Iceland, Spain, Sweden, UK and US). Source: National labour force surveys.

Youth unemployment increased sharply in the recent global economic crisis 5 Youth a unemployment rates, 2008 Q Q1 bc As a percentage of the corresponding labour force a) Persons aged (16-24 for Spain, UK and US). b) 2007 Q Q4 for Argentina; 2007 Q Q3 for Indonesia for China, India and Indonesia.c) Selected urban areas for Argentina and Brazil. Source: OECD calculations based on OECD Main Economic Indicators Database; and ILO, short term Indicators of the Labour Market.

6 NEET aged 15/16-24, 2009 a As a percentage of the population aged 15/16-24 a)Data for Indonesia refer to 2007; for Japan and South Africa to Persons aged (16-24 for Spain, UK and US). b) Data refer to total NEET rate. Source: OECD, Education database for OECD countries and Brazil; Encuesta Permanente de Hogares (EPH) for Argentina; Indonesia Family Life Survey, fourth wave for Indonesia; General Household Survey for South Africa. At-risk group: Youth neither in employment nor in education or training (NEET)

Key messages from the OECD’s work While the challenge of giving youth a better start is common to all countries, the barriers faced by young people entering the labour market differ across countries, as do the policy options to tackle these barriers. Improving youth labour market outcomes requires an in-depth understanding of country-specific issues.  However, some common trends in terms of policy responses are emerging:  Policies that promote strong and sustainable growth are vital to give youth a fair chance in the world of work.  Improving school-to-work transitions requires action on multiple fronts: education and training; labour market programmes; and labour market institutional settings. 7

Improving school-to-work transitions Education and training Ensure that youth acquire basic foundation skills and leave education with the skills that are required by employers and needed for life-long-learning. Labour market programmes Job-search assistance programmes are often the best way to help youth. Training programmes work best when they are carefully tailored to local or national labour market needs. Strengthening the support to provide to unemployed and disconnected youth needs comprehensive programmes that include class-room instruction, on-the-job training and adult mentoring. Labour market institutional settings Employment protection regulations, social security programmes and minimum wages can play an important role in preventing the exploitation of youth in low-paid, precarious jobs. However, an appropriate balance must be struck (possible role for social dialogue) to ensure that these institutions support rather than hinder the creation of decent jobs for youth. 8

Concluding remarks  Tackling the youth jobs crisis requires a strong commitment from all, the youth themselves, the government through well-targeted and effective measures, the social partners though their dialogue and other key actors, such as NGOs, who can really make the difference in dealing with the human dimension of this crisis.  Short-term cost-effective measures are needed to prevent most school- leavers from being trapped in unemployment/inactivity. But the main target group for intensive assistance should be the hard-core group.  There must be no let up in the longer-term reform efforts in education, social protection and the labour market that are necessary to ensure youth get a firm foothold in the labour market. 9

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