Our multi-layered experiences of youth unemployment

Together with our collective of young people, our Community Advocate Prisca explores the multi-layered experiences, reflections and knowledge on the topic of youth unemployment.

 

K Mitch Dodge via Unsplash

Youth unemployment is a complex issue which has only worsened with the coronavirus pandemic. There are often many questions about why so many young people are out of work and some of the answers reveal various prejudices - from the belief that unemployed young people are lazy, that they are stuck in a victim mentality or that their focus is not in the right place. However, there are many more reasons why youth unemployment has been high for years which are much more grounded in the current reality we live in. We have seen these reflected in the experiences of our community at Collaborative Future, who have shared with us both the effect of the lack of support for young people in their lives as well as the uplifting impact of being believed in and cheered on.

Often the seeds for youth unemployment are planted even before young people reach working age. Many young people have experienced feeling like they had been "written off" or had expectations placed on them by teachers who have then pushed them into specific industries or roles that the young people did not actually want.

It is very hard for young people to overcome this pressure; particularly because there is little funding for career guidance within schools or in the ever decreasing numbers of youth clubs. This means that young people, especially those who do not have family or other connections that can support them with job hunting, are not equipped with the tools needed to find and get a job (i.e. no one to review a CV for specific roles, no one to help them with a mock interview).

“Youth centres are the heart of many communities and it's in allowing a space for youth culture, for real conversations and for supporting young people who could fall through the cracks and be forgotten, that we nurture the talent, personality and vision of these young people that will ultimately become the future of our society.” - Casey, 21

This lack of support means that many people get to 16, 18 or 21 with no real understanding of their own skills and no or limited previous opportunities to pursue their interests. This, in turn, prevents them to develop the confidence in themselves and their skills to be proactive and put themselves forward for new opportunities even when they get a job.

When it is time to think about what career path young people might want to follow, the roles young people learn about are those of people that they get into contact with such as their parents' and other relatives or guardians' jobs, teachers or medical professionals. This means that they are simply not aware of the variety of positions and possibilities available to them. Sometimes there can also be some shame attached to choosing roles that are not usually pursued in one's community or family - discouraging young people from following their own interests.

“I had never heard of product management before I first came across this role. But all the skills required to be a good product manager- analytical and interpretive skills, good verbal and written communication, prioritisation- I already had. The rest I could learn along the way. To many I spoke to, the only possible career paths they saw as open to an English and History graduate was teaching or academia. Months after graduating, I started working in the tech industry as a Product Manager.” - Rania, 23

There is also still a very pervasive culture of little support for young people in work from their managers. Instead, young people are often expected to know and understand a workplace's culture or politics, as well as their job, without real support or guidance. Managers and co-workers can be unsupportive and even abusive - especially if the young person comes from a culture outside of that of the majority in a workplace. This prejudice against young people intersects with other types of prejudice (i.e. racism, ableism, sexism) and can prevent young people from having champions and mentors who believe in their potential and support their development.

“We’ve seen first hand that there’s a toxic belief among many organisations that young people should be ‘grateful’ for a job and eager to take on any tasks and any working patterns in order to ‘get on the ladder’. But when this mentality prevails young people are not given the freedom to truly demonstrate their value, or they quickly burn out trying to jump through hoops to prove themselves worthy. Managers need to consciously consider the power dynamics and bias that might be at play, and value all employees contributions and wellbeing regardless of their level of experience equally.” - Tess, 30

Believing in young people, supporting them and inspiring them to follow their interests and passions instead can be a catalyst for their growth and development.

“From conversations with other young people and my own experiences I found that those people who believe in you and empower you from early on in teenage years play such a pivotal role in your confidence in yourself and skillsets. My secondary school media teacher has played that part for me, and was a big reason why I chose to peruse creative media at University instead of art. She saw my efforts and talents and championed them from the early stages. She continues to be a great source of inspiration and support until this day.” - Sonia, 26

It is essential that young people are not left alone when they enter employment. A possible solution to this issue could be having appropriate training for management to know how to support young people in junior roles. This, in turn, would help young people develop the confidence to be proactive and put themselves forward for new opportunities when the time arises. Overall, there needs to be a deep cultural belief in young people within organisation so they can invest in them to become leaders in the future. This is what we focus on at Collaborative Future: providing young people with all the tools they need to enter and stay in employment through training, worthwhile paid work and, most of all, coaching and mentoring that inspires them to be who they are, believe in themselves and pursue their passions and interests.

“Working with Collaborative future was only the beginning for me - at the time I was not aware of how many doors this programme would open for me. After completing the internship programme I felt so much more confident applying for jobs that I may have felt underqualified to apply to before CF. The internship programme provided me with the necessary skill-set I needed to pursue the opportunities I wanted.” - Laura, 20

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