Page 5 - Information-on-the-Lifelong-Guidance-System-in-the-Czech-Republic

[2] Key Challenges Addressed

by the Guidance System

2�1 Employment rate local differences in the unemployment rate
within the country� In 2015 the proportion of
long-term unemployment represented 47,3%�
In 2016, the employment rate of the Czech Re- A high proportion of long-term unemployment
public was 72% that of the EU-28 (for the pop- is closely related to the structural unemploy-
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ulation aged 15-64 OECD Economic Surveys: ment issues� An unemployment rate was 4,0%�
Czech Republic 2016)� The higher employment
rate is mostly related to lower unemployment,
while activity rates in the CR are at the same 2�2 Industries
level as in the EU-28� The employment rate of
young people has been declining due to their
increasing participation in ISCED 3A upper-sec- The structure of the Czech economy changed
ondary education and tertiary education� In considerably after 1989� The proportion of agri-
contrast, the employment rate of people aged culture and heavy industry has decreased and,
50–64 is increasing as a consequence of the conversely, the share taken up by the service
gradual postponement of the retirement age� sector has grown� As compared to the EU-28,
the proportion of manufacturing in the Czech
Compared to the EU-28, the Czech Republic Republic is significantly higher in terms of gross
shows a larger difference between the rate of value added and employment� The figures for
employment of men and women, and this dif- the business service sector are still lower in the
ference has been hovering at a stable level� The Czech Republic, but rapidly growing�
main reasons are the lower retirement age for
women, the long period of maternity and paren- A large proportion of industry has a long tradi-
tal leave in comparison with other EU countries tion, dating back to the end of the 19 century,
th
and a low proportion of flexible types of work and so has the related vocational education�
(such as part-time work, homeworking etc�)� The communist regime strongly supported the
development of heavy industry in particular�
The numbers of early school leavers in the Following its transition to a market economy,
Czech Republic are lower than in the EU-28� the CR became the target of extensive foreign
(according to the EU Labour Force Survey, it is investment – particularly in the automotive
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6% in 2016� However employment opportuni- industry and electrical engineering� Foreign
ties for people who leave the education system investors found a combination of a high level
before getting a qualification are far worse� of technical education on the part of the labour
force and low labour costs� The growing labour
Long-term unemployment constitutes a ma- costs in the Czech Republic had a negative
jor problem within the context of the Czech effect on employment in some industries
labour market� Furthermore, there are important where the spatial proximity of suppliers is not
so important a factor (e�g� the textile industry)�
The economic recession, which began in 2008,
7 See glossary term: http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.
eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Glossary:Early_
leaver_from_education_and_training, and more
statistics: http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/ 8 http://refernet.cz/sites/default/files/download/
show.do?dataset=edat_lfse_14&lang=en. vet_2013_cz_cr.pdf

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