Press Story

Half of all out of work young people who are not in full-time education have never had a job, according to new IPPR analysis, released ahead of the latest unemployment statistics.

New IPPR analysis also shows, the unemployment rate for young people who have left regular education having had experience of paid work is 14 per cent but for those who did not it is as much as 23 per cent.

IPPR warns that young people in the UK are at risk because 75% of young people in all levels of education do not have a job, while in the Netherlands almost 60% of young people in education do. The recession and faltering recovery in the UK has seen Britain going backwards. Before the crash, in 2007, 1 in 3 young people in education were working.

But IPPR analysis suggests that while it has not helped, the recession cannot be blamed. The problem goes back to the late 1990s. Since 1998 the number of young people who have never had a job has almost doubled to 640,000.

IPPR analysis shows that having some experience of work is particularly important for young people with low or no qualifications. Analysis shows that 1 in 3 young people with less than 5 GCSEs A*-C and no experience of work are unemployed, compared to 1 in 6 with experience of work.

Spencer Thompson, Economic Analyst at IPPR, said:

"Gaining experience of the world of work while studying is vital for the future job chances of young people. But fewer and fewer young people are working while learning.

"These findings show the need for a job guarantee for young people, paid at least the minimum wage, to provide them vital with experience of the workplace. By having job experience on their CV when they leave full time education, young people will be at an instant and much needed advantage when entering the jobs market.

"This guarantee would also ensure that those who cannot afford to participate in unpaid work experience placements are not at a disadvantage when it comes to competing for jobs. Despite it being illegal to not pay young people a minimum wage, the prevailing culture of unpaid internships in the private sector is a major problem that needs to be challenged."

Notes to editors

IPPR's new report - 'A job for everyone: What should full employment mean in 21st century Britain?' - is available here: http://bit.ly/IPPR11002

IPPR's report - 'Youth unemployment in Europe: what makes a labour market 'youth friendly'?' - is available here: http://www.ippr.org/articles/56/9419/youth-unemployment-in-europe-what-makes-a-labour-market-youth-friendly

IPPR's report - Jobs for the Future: The path back to full employment in the UK - is available here: http://www.ippr.org/publications/55/7938/jobs-for-the-future-the-path-back-to-full-employment-in-the-uk

The final report of IPPR North's Northern Economics Futures Commission is available here:http://www.ippr.org/publication/55/9949/northern-prosperity-is-national-prosperity-a-strategy-for-revitalising-the-uk-economy

The latest unemployment statistics are available here:

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/lms/labour-market-statistics/july-2013/index.html

Experience of work is defined as at least one month of full-time (or equivalent) paid work. Data is derived from the ONS Labour Force Survey, using the Q1 dataset, and from the European Union Labour Force Survey for 2007, 2009 and 2011.