The United Kingdom risks creating a “lost generation” unless the ministers take immediate measures to prevent young people from moving away from the workplace, the business leaders warned on Sunday.
British chambers of commerce said employers were increasingly concerned about official data suggesting that nearly 1 million people aged 16 to 24 were not in education, employment or training (NEET), despite the need to promote new talents to the life of the British population.
These figures, based on the imprecise office of national statistics, are not reliable. But separate data based on tax files also suggest that young people have been the hardest in recent months, because the increase in labor costs and economic uncertainty weigh on hiring.
The new figures that will be published by the Adzuna job search website show Monday that the number of vacant positions for new graduates fell to a two -year hollow in March, even if the overall hiring began to recover from the crisis that followed the tax increases of the employers set out in the October Chancellor Racheur Reeves budget.
Shevaun Haviland, director general of the BCC Business Group, said that Gen Z – generally defined as those born between 1997 and 2012 – has faced higher obstacles to the labor market and the decrease in opportunities as the number of vacancies has dropped.
A report published by the BCC on Sunday cited evidence that a quarter of the people classified as Neet wanted to work, but could not because of their mental health.
“The more we leave this talent swimming pool to move away from the workplace, the more difficult it becomes for them to get involved,” said Haviland. “Unless more complete measures are taken, an entire generation risk of being rejected in society.”
However, companies also fear that they are invited to bring the costs of job, training and support for young people whom they consider as a risky bet – while absorbing the impact of a sweeping Upgrading of workers' rights This will make the dismissal of new recruits more difficult.
The government hopes that the social protection reforms announced last month, including major reductions in disability benefits and an expansion of return to work, will help young people who have mental health problems to enter the labor market and forge a career.
The ministers gave Sir Charlie Mayfield, former boss of the retailer John Lewis, the work of finding means for businesses and the government to help sick and disabled people to enter and stay at work.
Mayfield, which will publish detailed policy recommendations in the fall, said in a report last month that employers could currently find it cheaper to replace workers who fell ill than investing in their retention.
But the BCC said that if companies were to play their role, the government should “avoid introducing costs, risks and additional restrictions” through workers' rights reforms, which are now going through Parliament.
The Lobbies group, which represents a large number of small businesses, wants the government to spend more on mental health support and more in -depth training, and the departments of Whitehall “adopt a more collaborative approach”.
He also called on ministers to ensure that pressures on social services do not eat skills budgets from local authorities and offer employers grants to provide internships or hire young Neet with few qualifications.
Tax reductions for employers offering healthcare health services could be accompanied by a new requirement for large companies to publicly make their health provision, according to its report.
Employers should also offer flexible work if necessary and train line managers to provide more support to young people when they were likely to abandon, added the BCC.
The Department of Labor and Pensions said that the ministers were “determined that no youngster let themselves be left behind” and hung mental health support, revising jobs and offering a guarantee of learning, training or professional support for 18 to 21 years.
However, the BCC noted in its report that it was not yet clear how this youth guarantee would be delivered or if eight initial “pioneer” areas would be funded for the duration of the Parliament.
