The recent global financial slowdown may have been disastrous for high profile investors around the world. For months, newspapers and news channels covered stories of how investors lost millions, entrepreneurs had gone out of business and how a large portion of the population struggled with keeping a job down. What the media failed to bring to the world’s attention was the fact that the slowdown, following close on the heels of the 2008 global recession has had hugely impacted the social fabric which could have far reaching consequences.
The EU has been one of the hardest hit regions and it is only now that the European Union is able to understand just how dire the social impact of soaring unemployment level could be for the future of European youth. José Manuel Barroso, the Head of EU Commission, has now stated that as many as 26 million people across the EU bloc are without a job and a staggering 6 million of these are under the age of 25. What’s even more devastating to know that this figure represents nearly a quarter of all people under the age of 25 in the region.
The European Union has been hard at work trying to ensure that the employment schemes and initiatives launched by them start taking effect as soon as possible though the EU Commission president fears that if the employment situation doesn’t improve in time, it could leave a whole generation of young people scarred for life.
Dubbing the employment crisis across the EU a social emergency, Barroso claims that current levels of joblessness risk tearing the social fabric in the long term while damaging the economy irreparably. And the social anxiety amongst the unemployed youth of the region is beginning to give rise to social angst and anger as well. Many nations across the region are experiencing social upheaval and violent protests against their governments.
The EU bloc has begun shaping its 2014-2020 budget with youth unemployment programs being high on the agenda. The EU’s legislative arm is looking to earmark funds that would be used specifically for creation of jobs for the youth and making it easier for them to steady work.
The EC has also outlined schemes where member states would be needed to implement schemes where all young people would be provided with training or education within 4 months of leaving school or losing a job. These schemes are aimed at improving the labor market in the region and ensuring that the youth of the region has employable skills to improve their chances of gaining steady employment.
