MODULE © International Training Centre of the ILO tackling youth employment problems tackling youth employment problems problem identification and situation

MODULE

© International Training Centre of the ILO

tackling youth employment tackling youth employment problemsproblems

problem identification problem identification and situation analysisand situation analysis

A900833 Tackling youth employment problemsTurin, 2 – 11 July 2007

M1 Problem identification and analysis module

© copyright International Training Centre of the ILO 2

learning objectives

after completing this module, participants will be able to establish better diagnosis of youth employment problems by……strengthening their knowledge of basic

employment concepts…reviewing recurrent youth employment problems…developing their capacity at developing an

alternative or critical analysis of labour market situations



outline

A. employment: concepts and definitions– youth, labour force, employment,

unemployment…– decent work

B. youth employment problems– what young people want – what young people find– 4 common problem areas

C. understanding youth employment problems– causes and consequences– a matter of analysis

module

employment:concepts and definitions

M1 Problem identification and analysis > A. Employment concepts and definitions module


selected fundamental labour economic concepts

• youth• labour force• employment• unemployment• underemployment• decent work



youth: definition

• standard UN definition: 15-24 years old

– 15-19 = teenagers– 20-24 = young adults

• countries may use other age limits

– working age reporting– compulsory schooling– for policy purposes

• IPEC– 5 – 18 = children

S



youth: concepts

• the youth, as a group, differ in many ways from labour force participants in other age groups– they are less experienced– but are they are more adaptable…– they may be less productive– but they are often paid less…

1524

2534

3544

4555



youth: concepts

• at the same time they are, within their group, as diverse as the overall population: some young people are worse off than others– family background– gender– location (e.g. urban vs. rural)– ethnic background, caste, religion– disability, health problems– language, literacy– other skills



the labour force: definition

comprises all persons who, during a specified brief period (either one week or one day), are either employed or available for work and seeking it

Resolution concerning statistics of the economically active population, employment, unemployment and underemployment, adopted by the Thirteenth International Conference of Labour Statisticians (October 1982)



the labour force

POPULATION

working age not working age

employed not working

paid employment self employment available and seeking available, not seeking not available

the currently active population,also referred to as the labour force

the unemployed



employment: definition

the state of performing, during a specified reference period, some work for wage or salary, or profit or family gain, in cash or in kind



employment: categories

•paid-employment– including apprentices

•self-employment– employers, own account

workers, members of producers’ cooperatives

– unpaid family members

including……the under-employed

…full and part-time workers

… at work or not at work



particular groups

• students, homemakers, pensioners engaged in economic activity

• contributing family workers• producers for own and household

consumption• apprentices and trainees• members of the armed forces• others



unemployment: definition

the status of all persons above a specified age who during the reference period were without work, but available for work and actively seeking it



underemployment (16th ICLS)

• underutilisation of the productive capacity of the employed population in relation to alternative work situation– time-related underemployment: insufficient hours

of work– inadequate employment situations: inadequate

use of capacities

module

youth employment problems

M1 Problem identification and analysis > B. Youth employment problems module


youth employment problems

• not all youth are affected by employment problems but, on the whole, youth appear to be more affected than older people

• while youth unemployment rates are invariably higher than comparable rates for adults, youth unemployment is not necessarily the only, or, in terms of numbers affected, the worst of youth employment problems



employment: what young people want

– full employment– stable employment– productive employment– rewarding employment– freely chosen employment– respect for rights at work– safe work– social security– voice, representation– social dialogue

i.e. decent work!



decent work

is at the heart of social progress

“ the primary goal of the ILO todayis to promote opportunitiesfor women and men to obtaindecent and productive work,in conditions of freedom, equity,security and human dignity ”

ILO D.G. Juan Somavia: www.ilo.org/public/english/decent.htm



employment: what young people find

– unemployment– under-employment– precarious employment– low levels of productivity– low earnings, poverty– hazardous work– forced labour– child labour– denial of rights at work– lack of “voice”, representation



common problem areas:

1. low quality of jobs that the youth are in

2. inadequate quality of labour supply3. ineffective (labour market)

institutions4. youth unemployment



1. low quality of jobs that youth are in

• low pay (or no pay)• few hours, underemployment• long hours, no vacation• no contract, no rights• no social protection• harassment, maltreatment• unhealthy, unsafe work• no voice, no representation• no prospects



2. inadequate quality of labour supply

• illiteracy• low levels of education• low quality of education• low levels of skill• skills mismatch• lack of employability• health problems



3. ineffective (labour market) institutions

• legislation, regulation• discrimination• labour market information• training, retraining• employment services• representative organisations• social dialogue• investment climate



4. youth unemployment: a global issueyouth and total unemployment by region and sex (in millions), 2004, source: KILM 2005 (Fourth edition)



question: are young people who are illiterate, or less educated than others, more likely to be unemployed?

answer: maybe, maybe not!

youth unemployment: assumptions



youth unemployment and illiteracy

unemployment and illiteracy rates of young persons aged 15 to 24 years, 2000

source: KILM, www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/strat/kilm/kilm09.htm, accessed 01/2007



question: are young women more likely to be unemployed than young men?

answer: maybe, maybe not!

youth unemployment: assumptions



male and female youth unemployment rates, selected

countries, 2001

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

0 20 40 60

male

female

youth unemployment by sex

module

understanding youthemployment problems

M1 Problem identification and analysis > C. Understanding youth employment problems module


…to better tackle them by…

… identifying their symptoms, context and consequences

… appreciating their respective causes

… knowing the people affected by them

… formulating what is to be aimed at and

… how objectives should be met

understandingyouth employment problems



understandingyouth employment problems

causes……..problems…..…policies…..….objectives……..solutions

cause

cause

cause

cause

cause

cause

cause

cause

problem

problem

problem



consequences

of youth unemployment

• as for unemployment in general– loss/lack of income, poverty– frustration, exclusion

• of youth being particularly affected – new talent undiscovered/wasted– anti-social behaviour



causes

of youth unemployment • affecting the youth particularly

– many school leavers among job seekers – time it takes cohorts to find a job– waiting for a better opportunity– first-time insertion hurdles: employability– strict employment protection regulation

favouring those already in employment

– employer preference for older workers – “last in first out”– …………………………



causes

of youth unemployment• affecting the whole of the

unemployed– weak overall demand for labour– qualifications mismatch– information constraints– mobility constraints– failing labour market institutions– economic downturn, financial crisis– structural and/or technological change– ………………………….



a matter of analysis

• using labour market information to identify problems, to explain their causes, and to propose possible solutions in terms of pertinent labour market policies– which indicators– using indicators – using percentage changes– using indices



which indicators

• MDG 8: Develop a global partnership for development – Target 16: In cooperation with developing

countries, develop and implement strategies for decent and productive work for youth

• Indicator 45: Unemployment rate of 15- to 24-year-olds, male and female and total



which indicators

• Youth unemployment rate• Ratio of youth unemployment rate to

total unemployment rate• Share of youth unemployment in total

unemployment• Share of youth unemployment in total

youth population• Proportion of young people who are either

employed or in education or training

Source: Guidance note for the preparation of national reviews and action plans on youth employment in response to resolution 57/165 on Promoting Youth Employment



• 60% of the 15-19 year old are unemployed men

• 60% of the unemployed men are 15-19 year old

• 60% of the 15-19 year old men are unemployed

• 60% of the unemployed are 15-19 year old men



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

(Adult %)

(Youth %)

Source: ILO, KILM 2003

<1

>3 2-3 1-2

a matter of analysisusing indicators




using indicators

Total, youth, and adult unemployment rates in Brazil (2001), Turkey (2002) and South Africa (2000)Source: KILM 2003

0%

17%

34%

51%

Brazil Turkey South Africa

Total UR

Youth UR

Adult UR




using indicators

Ratio of youth to adult unemployment rate,Brazil (2001), Turkey (2002) and South Africa (2000)Source: KILM 2003

0

1

2

3

Brazil Turkey South Africa

Total

Male

Female




using percentage changes

• percentage changes

– the following are monthly wage data in Thai baht for employed persons in manufacturing from the first quarter of the Labour Force Survey:

1995 41141996 48001997 53861998 55801999 56472000 5516





• the simplest procedure for percentage changes is to compare the current year “t” with the previous year “t-1”:

[ Wt - W(t-1) ] / W(t-1) * 100

• using data for 1995 and 1996:

( 4800 – 4114 ) / 4114 * 100 = 16.7 %





Percentage Changes in Nominal Monthly Wages for Manufacturing, Thailand 1996-2000 (Baht)

-5

0

5

10

15

20

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000source: KILM 2005

module

points to remember



• there are international conventions and regulations defining labour market concepts– but national contexts and priorities must be taken

into account

• there are worst youth employment problems than unemployment

• labour market analysis can be carried out by different actors, even when little information is available

• question!– question the questions– question the data

module

discussion time…

Documents

MODULE © International Training Centre of the ILO tackling youth employment problems tackling youth employment problems problem identification and situation