Page 38 - Guiding-at-risk-youth-through-learning-to-work-Lessons-from-across-Europe

Guiding at-risk youth through learning to work
Lessons from across Europe

past 12 months. As a result, even many graduates from FE, VET and HE
institutions, who normally would find jobs relatively quickly after graduation, have
now struggled to make the transition into the labour market. Consequently, young
people with low levels of education are the ones having the toughest time finding
a job, as they now have to compete for a smaller number of available jobs
against their qualified and skilled peers.
It is expected that countries will continue to be affected by the consequences
of high and persistent youth unemployment for some time after the recovery is
well underway. This is likely to make school-to-work transitions longer, across
European countries.
For these reasons, employment and labour ministers in the OECD countries
(OECD, 2009a) have called for:
• interventions to help young people to get a firm foothold in the labour market,
while improving their skills to promote their career prospects. This includes job
search assistance and guidance for young jobseekers;

• appropriate education and training policies, which are seen as essential in
ensuring smooth transitions from school to work. These should include actions
to prevent early school leaving.
The consequences of a problematic transition for young people from
education into the labour market can be varied and far-reaching (OECD, 2009b):
youth unemployment, underemployment, risk of recurrent unemployment through
the lifetime of an individual and associated problems relating to social exclusion
(OECD, 2005).

3.2.2. Aiding effective transition
The transition of young people into the labour market has been a central policy
question for a number of years. In 1996, the OECD’s Education Committee
launched the Thematic review of the transition from initial education to working
life (OECD, 2000), responding to increasing levels of concern about youth
unemployment and those at risk in the transition from education to working life.
The review found that there is no standardised policy response to the
problem; countries tailor their policy development according to their specific
situation. The review identified six key features of effective transition, towards
which countries should direct their policy-making:
(a) a healthy economy;
(b) well-organised pathways that connect initial education with work and further
study;
(c) widespread opportunities to combine workplace experience with education;

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