NEET is an acronym for ‘not in employment, education or training’, used to refer to the situation of many young persons, aged between 15 and 29, in Europe. The aim of the NEET concept is to broaden understanding of the vulnerable status of young people and to better monitor their problematic access to the labour market.
Some young people face particular difficulties in accessing employment: those who have a disability or other health problems are 40% more likely to become NEETs.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of NEETs increased to 13.7% (9.8 million) in 2020.
Data visualisation: Young people in the EU
Eurofound Talks podcast: Episode 3: The impact of COVID-19 on young people in the EU
With Youth Guarantee implementation, the number of NEETs aged 15–29 has decreased, from around 14 million at the height of the 2008–2013 crisis to 9.3 million in 2019 (12.6%), rising during the COVID-19 pandemic and falling again to 8.2 million in 2023 (11.2%). However, Eurofound research estimates the loss to European economies in benefits and forgone earnings and taxes to be significant (€142 billion a year in 2015). This has a major impact on the economic and social development of the EU.
With the situation of young people also exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Eurofound analyses the impact of the crisis on these figures, building on its previous research on youth.
Eurofound has pioneered a decade of extensive research on NEETs (see publications further below) and has:
As part of this research, Eurofound has sought to unravel the heterogeneity of the NEET population. Its 2016 study on the diversity of NEETs provides a new categorisation into seven subgroups in order to better understand the composition of this group of young people. The aim is to better assist policymakers in understanding who the NEETs are and to assist the design of adequate support measures to meet a wide variety of needs. Each of these groups is made up of a mix of vulnerable and non-vulnerable young people who are not accumulating human capital through formal channels, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Eurofound's 2021 study on the 'Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people' includes an update of the diversity of NEETs based on 2019 data.
Eurofound’s e-survey on Living, working and COVID-19, launched during the pandemic and carried out in various rounds from 2020 to 2022, aimed to establish the initial impact of the pandemic on the lives of EU citizens. Young people in Europe felt the strong impact of pandemic restrictions as they tried to cope with the lowest levels of mental well-being and high levels of loneliness. Young men also appeared most affected by job loss.
NEETs emerged as one of the most vulnerable groups following the 2008–2013 Great Recession. The major concern for policymakers is how these young people will again be affected by the economic and social consequences of COVID-19.
Building on its previous research on youth, Eurofound continues to examine the impact of the pandemic on young people, in particular their economic and social situation, with a focus on employment, their wishes and plans for the future, their route to independence, as well as well-being outcomes in a post-pandemic world. It estimates how the NEET population has changed in size and composition over the last decade, and how the pandemic and the rising cost of living might affect this. The research also examines the most important policy initiatives adopted in the EU Member States to support young people during the crisis, particularly measures related to employment, education and financial help.
In addition to research on the diversity of NEETs, over the years Eurofound has explored (see publications section below):
Lowering youth unemployment, and aiming to effectively engage as many of Europe’s young people as possible in the world of work, is at the heart of the EU policy agenda. The 2008–2013 economic crisis led to high levels of youth unemployment and thus disengagement among young people. In light of this, researchers and government officials have sought new ways of monitoring and analysing the prevalence of labour market vulnerability and disengagement among young people.
The NEET concept has been widely used as an indicator to inform youth-oriented policies on employability, education, training and also social inclusion in the EU Member States since 2010.
NEETs were specifically referred to for the first time in European policy discussions in the Europe 2010 flagship initiative ‘Youth on the move’. The age category covered by the term was 15–24 and was later broadened to include those aged 15–29. The concept is now centrally embedded in the policy discourse at EU level. In 2023, 11.2% of the population aged 15–29 were NEETs, which is a historic low. The NEET rate rose during the pandemic to 13.8% in 2020, but has been steadily declining since then.
In April 2013, the European Commission’s proposal to the Council of the European Union to implement a Youth Guarantee in all Member States was adopted. Reducing the number of NEETs is an explicit policy objective of the Youth Guarantee. This initiative aimed to ensure that all young people aged 15–24 receive a good-quality offer of employment, continued education, apprenticeship or traineeship within four months of becoming unemployed or leaving formal education. The roll-out of the Youth Guarantee across Member States, via the Youth Employment Initiative, has contributed to improving the situation on the ground, reducing the number of NEETs.
In December 2016, the Commission launched the initiative 'Investing in Europe's Youth', a renewed effort to support young people. Given the positive impact of the Youth Guarantee up to that point, the Commission increased the finances available for the Youth Employment Initiative until 2020 to encourage more effective outreach to young people.
A new EU Youth Strategy was adopted in 2018 and sets out a framework for cooperation with Member States on their youth policies for the period 2019–2027. The strategy focuses on three core areas of action, centred around the words ‘engage, connect, empower’. Meanwhile, COVID-19 had a grave impact on apprenticeships and training. To aid the economic recovery from the pandemic, on 1 July 2020 the new Commission launched a Youth Employment Support package to provide a ‘bridge to jobs’ for the next generation. The Commission put forward a proposal for a Council Recommendation on ‘A Bridge to Jobs – Reinforcing the Youth Guarantee’, to replace the 2013 Recommendation. It extends the age range covered by the Youth Guarantee from age 24 to 29.
The European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, proposed by the European Commission in March 2021 and followed by a declaration at the Porto Social Summit in May 2021, introduced new, ambitious targets for young people, such as reducing the rate of NEETs in the EU to 9% by 2030.
