Minimising the longer-term impact of the jobs crisis on youth

The danger of a “lost generation” following the 2008-09 recession has motivated many countries to intervene vigorously in the youth labour market. Governments now face difficult choices going forward to assure a job-rich recovery for youth in the context of moderate and uncertain growth and mounting fiscal pressures. In the short term, the main objective is to ensure that school-leavers and young workers remain connected to the labour market. In this context, it is of paramount importance that governments continue to act decisively during the recovery phase to provide more job-search assistance and guidance for all young people experiencing difficulties in finding a job, to support young workers made redundant and target well-designed active labour market programmes for the most disadvantaged among them.