David Farrugia writes in The Conversation (27.4.16) about the nation’s increasing levels of youth unemployment, especially in the regions, and suggests ways that local communities can help alleviate the problem.
‘The world of work has become an increasingly difficult environment for young people. Youth unemployment in Australia is persistently higher than for other age groups.
‘In response, our governments have delivered one-size-fits-all policies that focus on national targets encouraging education programs to make unemployed young people more “work ready”.
‘These approaches assume that, with the right education or training, a young person will be able to get a job. However, this is not the case, especially for young people who live in areas of high youth unemployment.
‘To reduce youth unemployment, education and labour market policies must go beyond a focus on individual young people to offer solutions at a community level.’