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Youth is the term used to describe the period between childhood and adulthood. While this may be a fluid definition, it is also used in policy terms to refer to specific age groups. Providing a good environment for young people to grow up, learn and work is a key goal for Europe and for Eurofound – but one that faces particular challenges. Young people have long been an important focus of policy at EU level and this is particularly true today.
The economic loss to the EU of youth disengagement was estimated at over €142 billion a year in 2015.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of young people not in employment, education or training (NEET) increased to 13.7% (9.8 million) in 2020.
Despite the recent crisis, young people remain slightly more optimistic than other age groups.
Data visualisation: Young people in the EU
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Eurofound has carried out a large body of work on youth issues related to employment, quality of life and social cohesion. Research continues to look at issues affecting young people in several topic areas, particularly employment and labour markets, living conditions and quality of life, as well as access to public services.
Eurofound’s unique e-survey, Living, working and COVID-19, provides an insight into the impact of the pandemic on people's lives, including young people, with the aim of helping policymakers shape the response to this crisis. The survey has continued post-pandemic as the Living and working in the EU survey, allowing for comparison of the challenges facing young people during the different stages of living through the pandemic and during the recovery after.
Building on this research, Eurofound has analysed the impact of COVID-19 on young people in the EU in terms of employment, their economic situation, social exclusion, mental well-being and trust in institutions. It also provides an overview of the policy measures put in place to reduce the economic and social impact of the pandemic on young people.
Research findings published in 2024 focus on the situation of young people in a post-pandemic world and their plans for the future in the context of rising living costs and the labour market and housing situation.
In the aftermath of the 2008–2013 crisis, EU unemployment soared to alarming levels, hitting 20% for those aged 15–29 and reaching even higher levels in individual Member States. With the help of the Youth Guarantee and other measures, youth unemployment has recovered in recent years, finally reaching pre-crisis levels in 2019. Yet, the unemployment rate of the younger cohorts remains consistently higher than that of the overall population. And the questions remain as to where the jobs are and how young people can be helped, particularly those who are disengaged from the labour market over the long term. The reinforced Youth Guarantee will be crucial here in reacting to the COVID-19 crisis and in avoiding another sharp increase in youth unemployment.
Eurofound's research provides a broad range of inputs to the development of youth policy, looking at:
The focus of research has recently been adapted to examine the effects of COVID-19 on young people in Europe.
Alongside high unemployment, since 2008 the Member States have been dealing with the disproportionate impact of recession on young people under 30, even those with higher levels of education. The number of those aged 15–29 who were not in employment, education or training (NEET) rose rapidly after 2008, but had been declining again since 2014, returning to pre-crisis levels by 2018 and in 2023 dropping to a historic low of 11.2% and nearing the EU target of 9% by 2030. Yet the rates remain high in some Member States, particularly Romania, Italy and Greece. Eurofound seeks to understand the economic and social consequences of youth disengagement from the labour market and education.
Research on the impact of COVID-19 on young people has focused on the economic and social situation of young people at the onset of the pandemic, particularly NEETs. It describes the labour market participation of young people during the period 2007–2020 and discusses the characteristics and diversity of NEETs.
Young people with a disability or other health problem are 40% more likely of becoming NEET than others. A policy of active inclusion is seen as the most appropriate for addressing these difficulties. Eurofound has analysed active inclusion policy for young people with disabilities or health problems in 11 EU Member States.
The youth dimension is relevant across many areas of Eurofound research, including its surveys.
The Living, working and COVID-19 e-survey, carried out in several rounds since 2020, explores the impact of the pandemic across age groups. Topics affecting young people include job loss and insecurity, mental well-being, social exclusion and optimism about the future, experiences with online education, trust in institutions and access to public services.
The European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) 2016 found important differences between age groups in relation to quality of life, social inclusion, the quality of society and access to public services. EQLS data have also been used to compile a policy brief on the social situation of young people in Europe.
The European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) shows that some aspects of the working conditions of young workers (under 25) differ considerably from those of older workers. Research also shows that the skills gap between younger and older workers is gradually closing.
Eurofound’s COVID-19 survey used various questions from the EQLS and EWCS, adapting them where necessary for the purpose of the survey.
Youth employment and issues affecting young people remain high on the EU’s policy agenda. Having already paid the highest toll of the previous recession, it emerged that young people were among the most vulnerable to the severe social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictive measures.
To avoid history repeating itself, in July 2020 the Commission launched a Youth Employment Support package structured around four strands 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, as a concrete policy instrument to tackle the employment and social consequences of COVID-19. This aims to ensure that all young people under 30 receive a good quality offer of employment, continued education, an apprenticeship or a traineeship within four months of becoming unemployed or leaving formal education. This initiative links in with the needs of companies to provide the skills needed, particularly for the green and digital transitions. It extends the age range covered by the Youth Guarantee from age 15–24 to 15–29.
The Youth Employment Support package also includes a proposal on vocational education and training, a renewed impetus for apprenticeships and additional measures to support youth employment.
This initiative builds on previous actions at European level. The Commission’s 2016 Communication ‘Investing in Europe's Youth’ aimed to support young people in the form of a Youth Package. The package supports better opportunities to access employment, via the Youth Guarantee and Youth Employment Initiative launched in 2013, better opportunities through education and training, as well as better opportunities for solidarity, learning mobility and participation.
As part of this effort, the latest EU Youth Strategy (2019–2027), adopted on 26 November 2018, sets out the framework for cooperation with Member States on their youth policies. Activities are grouped into three main areas of action, around the words ‘Engage’, ‘Connect’ and ‘Empower’.
In January 2020, the Commission presented its Communication ‘A strong social Europe for just transitions’. This prepared the way for an Action Plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights, which reiterates the EU’s commitment to the Youth Guarantee. 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 young people aged 15–29 who are not in employment, education or training (NEET) from 12.6% (2019) to 9% by 2030.
Eurofound’s work on youth issues links in with the Commission’s 2019–2024 priority on an economy that works for people and is highly relevant here.
