Young people increasingly shut out of first jobs
I have been on the circuit over the last couple of weeks talking to parishes about the localism act. My main point is that the impact of the recession on rural communities, which means it is harder to: live, work and keep warm, in rural England means we need to get to grips with the new opportunities in the localism act to mobilise at the neighbourhood level to develop some of our own solutions.
This story adds grist to the mill in reflecting how hard it is all for all young people at the current time to find a job. We know this position is worst in rural areas where the lower density of jobs restricts choice even more. The article tells us:
“More than 450,000 young people have been unable to make the transition from learning into work as employers have increasingly changed what it is they look for when hiring, with many under-25s in the UK unable to match the skills needed, according to a new study.
The report from the Work Foundation argues that as jobs have moved from production to service-led roles over the past decade, employers increasingly require “softer” skills such as good communication or working as part of a team more than technical ability.”