The ETUC is calling on the European Commission to significantly improve its youth guarantee after new calculations warned youth unemployment will almost double this year.

Eurostat figures show youth unemployment leapt by 159,000 in March alone as the lockdown began, taking the total number to 2.8m (15.4%), while many more struggle to survive from precarious work.

And academics predict the crisis will push youth unemployment to 4.8 million (26.2%) by the end of the year. They also expect the number of NEETs (young people not in education, employment, or training) to increase from 4.9m to 6.7 million.

Facing this devastating scenario, the reinforced Youth Guarantee to be revealed by the Commission tomorrow must increase funding, improve access, and prioritise real jobs over low-quality traineeships.     

Major problems with the existing Youth Guarantee are:

– Up to 60% of interventions consisted of traineeship rather than real jobs in some member states. Its results “fall short of expectations”, according to the European Court of Auditors.

– Member states are not achieving the aim of providing NEETs a good quality offer within four months as outreach remains limited. Low-quality internships have contributed to precariousness.

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