Van Rompuy vindt Europese jeugdwerkloosheid belangrijkste tijdens EU-top (en)

EUROPEAN COUNCIL - 27/28 JUNE 2013 FACTSHEET ON YOUTH EMPLOYMT

The President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy i, wants the June European Council to become a "rallying point" of national governments, social partners and European institutions to join forces in addressing the urgent problem of youth unemployment in Europe.

Youth unemployment in Europe

People between 15 and 24 years belong to the most vulnerable groups in our societies, as they are either newcomers to the labour market or their foothold in the labour market is recent and not very consolidated. The economic crisis has hit across all layers of society and young people is one of the most affected groups. The situation is particularly acute in certain Member States and regional differences in the rate of youth unemployment are increasing significantly. This could pose a serious threat to social cohesion and increase the risk of political instability

Youth unemployment (%) in EU 27 among 15-24 years (2006-2012) - Source: Eurostat

2006 2008 2010 2012

In April 2013, the youth unemployment rate reached 23.5% in the EU 27. Moreover, the disparities between member states and between regions within member states are significant: the youth unemployment rate is over 50% in some member states and over 70% in some regions, while in a few regions it is even below 5%. All in all, currently more than 7.5 million of young people under 25 are neither in employment, education or training (NEET)

Actions to reduce youth unemployment

The root causes of unemployment have to be addressed through structural reforms at national level like reducing taxation on labour and eliminating the segmentation of the labour markets

The labour markets will only fully recover, when Europe has overcome the economic crisis, which underlines the importance of EU's comprehensive strategy to combat the crisis through (1) restoring financial stability, (2) making the economies more resilient through sound public finances and improved competitiveness, (3) taking immediate measures for jobs and growth, and (4) completing the architecture of the Economic and Monetary Union

As part of the 3rd leg of EU's crisis strategy and to address the urgent problem of youth unemployment, the June European Council is a "rallying point" for mobilising all immediate measures for jobs - from Member States over Social Partners to the European institutions. Although social and employment policies are first and foremost a national responsibility, the EU can complement and support

PRESS

General Secretariat of the Council - Press Office

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The June European Council is expected to agree on a number of new measures to combat youth unemployment at EU level:

> Frontloading the Youth Employment Initiative of EUR 6 bn to ensure that the support is ready as of January 2014 and disbursed in 2014-2015 rather than spread over the entire MFF period of 2014-2020. In fact, more funding for this purpose could still be made available from unused commitments in the years to come. This should help ensure the maximum impact of the Youth Employment Initiative that targets regions with a youth unemployment rate of more than 25%

> Speeding up the national Youth Guarantee Schemes to ensure that young people receive a job offer or an offer of education or training within four months after becoming unemployed or leaving school

> Targeting youth unemployment when implementing the Structural Funds, including by reprogramming unspent funds. Likewise, resources from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund can now also be used to combat youth unemployment

> Increase mobility of young job-seekers by ia strengthening the "Your First EURES job", implementation of the Directive for mutual recognition of professional qualifications and the Erasmus* programme

The European Council will also welcome the "Framework of Actions on Youth Employment" agreed by the Social Partners on 11 June

The European Council's agreement on a new Investment Plan for Europe with focus on helping to finance the economy and in particular Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) through the next MFF and new measures from the European Investment Bank will also reduce youth unemployment

Age Total Pop Labour Force Job Seekers Activity Rate Unempl. Rate Unempl. Ratio Educ or Training NEETs

15 to 24 (1,000')_(1,000')_(1,000')_%_%_%_%_%

Source: EUROSTAT

Note: The unemployment rate is the number of people unemployed as a percentage of the labour force.

The unemployment ratio is the number of people unemployed as a percentage of the total population. The activity rate is the

number of active people (both employed and unemployed) as a percentage of the total population.

References

> Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council website

> Laszló Andor, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion website

> Youth Opportunities Initiative website

> EURES (European Job Mobility Portal) website

> Joint EU Commission-European Investment Bank report to the European Council document

> European Social Partners framework of actions on youth employment document

> Press release on Youth Guarantee document

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