UK youth unemployment reaches its highest level in four years
One in twenty young people are currently unemployed, the highest level in four years, latest estimates reveal.
Some 350,000 people aged 16-24 were classified as unemployed between July and September this year, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Youth unemployment, which has been falling over the past decade, is now at its highest level since 2016.
Overall, however, the number of young people not in a job, education, or training, has fallen.
This is “partially because there has been a large increase in the proportion of young people in full-time education,” the ONS said.
The figures were slightly worse for young men, seven per cent of whom were unemployed.
Only three per cent of young women were unemployed.
The economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic has hit young workers harder than older workers.
In the first wave, one third of 18-24 year olds were unemployed or furloughed, double the national average, according to the Resolution Foundation.
Any rise in unemployment among young people is particularly concerning, as unemployment early on can permanently stunt career prospects.
Research on German workers suggests that the effects of early-career unemployment on income can last well over a decade.
It found those who suffer from repeated spells of unemployment most at risk.