Labour market
Unemployment rates at 29.3% for those aged 16 and 17
Unemployment rates by age, UK, seasonally adjusted
Young people have historically experienced the highest rates of unemployment compared with other age groups. In January to March 2009, the unemployment rates for those aged 16 and 17 in the UK stood at 29.3 per cent, whereas for all people aged 16 and over the unemployment rate was 7.1 per cent.
The overall rise in unemployment rates during the current recession reflects an increase in unemployment across all age groups. Unemployment levels for young people aged 16 to 17 increased by 13.3 per cent over the year to March 2009. Over the same period, this compares with an increase of 36.4 per cent for those aged 16 and over. In January to March 2009, young people aged 16 and 17 who were unemployed accounted for 9 per cent of unemployed people aged 16 and over.
Unemployment levels and rates for the young people aged 18 to 24 have been relatively stable since the late 1990s but have increased with the recent economic downturn. In the three months to March 2009, the unemployment level for this age group increased by 32.1 per cent. In the three months to March 2009, young people aged 18 to 24 who were unemployed accounted for 30.5 per cent of all unemployed people aged 16 and over. Unemployment rates are higher for young men than they are for young women: in the three months to March 2009, the unemployment rate for women aged 18 to 24 was 13.3 per cent compared to 18.6 per cent for men of the same age.
Employment rates for young people aged 18 to 24 are higher than for the 16 to 17 age group: in the three months to March 2009, the employment rate for the 18 to 24 age group was 60.6 per cent compared with a rate of 30.6 for the 16 to 17 age group. Employment rates for both these age groups have been falling since around the start of the century due to an upward trend in the number and proportion of young people participating in full-time education.
Employment rates for young men are higher than for women in the 18 to 24 age group but lower than those for women in the 16 to 17 age group. In the three months to March 2009, the rate for women aged 16 to 17 was 32.5 per cent compared to 28.7 per cent for young men. Women aged 18 to 24 had an employment rate of 59.1 per cent compared with 62.0 per cent for men.
Percentage of young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET): by age group, UK
One of the concerns in recent years in relation to young people has been the number of people under 25 who are not in employment, education or training (NEET). Despite a general improvement in employment and reduction in unemployment over the period 2001 to 2008, the proportion of young people who are NEET has remained fairly stable. Those aged 16 and 17 have seen a slight decline in the proportions who are NEET, which is likely to be related to the increase in the numbers in further education. The proportion of those aged 16 who are NEET decreased from 7 per cent in 2001 to 4 per cent in 2008, while the proportion for those aged 17 remained at 8 per cent over the period. The proportions who are NEET in 18 to 24 age group have increased slightly, particularly for men, by 3 percentage points since 2004.
Young women are more likely to be NEET than young men: 15 per cent of those aged 16 to 24 were NEET compared with 11 per cent of men of the same age. However, the opposite is true for those aged 16 and 17, where men were more likely to be NEET. Analysis shows that for those aged 16 to 24 who were in employment, education or training in 2008, 94 per cent said that they would definitely work in the future. For young people of the same age who say they are NEET only 65 per cent expected to work in the future.
Source: Labour Force Survey, Office for National Statistics
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Focus on Children and Young People