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More jobs opportunities and better skills needed to ensure that young people benefit from the ongoing recovery

The initial experience in the labour market has a profound influence on later working life. Getting off to a good ‌start facilitates youth integration into the world of work and lays the foundation for a good career, while it can be difficult to catch up after an initial failure. This publication analyses the situation of youth employment and unemployment in the context of the jobs crisis and beyond and identifies successful policy measures in OECD countries.

This report makes an important contribution to a new agenda of youth-friendly employment policies and practices. It analyses the situation of youth employment and unemployment in the context of the jobs crisis and identifies successful policy measures in OECD countries. But it also discusses structural reforms in education and in the labour market that can facilitate the transition from school to work. The report draws on both recent data and the main lessons that emerged from the 16 country reviews conducted as part of the OECD Jobs for Youth.

Overviews of the report

• Press release, including key findings by country 
• Summaries in English, Chinese, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish
• Position paper

Related work

• Investing in Skills to Foster Youth Employability – What Are the Key Policy Challenges? by Stefano Scarpetta and Anne Sonnet
• Rising youth unemployment during the crisis: how to prevent negative long-term consequences on a generation? by Stefano Scarpetta, Anne Sonnet and Thomas Manfredi
• Going Separate Ways? School-to-Work Transitions in the United States and Europe, by Glenda Quintini and Thomas Manfredi
• Contribution to G20 Labour and Employment Ministerial, Mexico, May 2012

• Youth employment and unemployment
• OECD work on Youth
• OECD Jobs for Youth review