Youth unemployment is more than an 'economy problem' - the system is broken from the start

As a recruiter of thirty years, I can tell you this isn’t just one problem. It’s a leaky system. From the kitchen table to the classroom, from the interview room to Whitehall, we’re losing talent at every stage and acting surprised when we cannot fill jobs.

Yes, the numbers are stark. Around 14 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds not in full-time education are unemployed. Close to a million are NEET (not in education, employment or training). The highest level in over a decade.

But here’s the uncomfortable bit.

At the same time, employers in care, construction, labs, logistics and digital are desperate. I have clients with good, stable roles open for months. Not vanity jobs. Real work. Real prospects. Not enough suitable applicants.

Lots of young people without decent work.

Lots of work without suitable young people.

That is not bad luck. It is a design flaw.

In three decades of interviewing, one pattern is relentless. Weak foundations in English and Maths narrow options fast. Not because young people lack intelligence, but because the basics matter at work.

Post-Covid, attainment gaps widened. Disadvantaged young people fell further behind. That translates directly into fewer choices and lower confidence when they step into the labour market.

We cannot talk about social mobility and then shrug at poor core skills.

Ask teenagers what they want to be and you will hear influencer, entrepreneur, psychologist. Rarely lab technician, quantity surveyor or process engineer.

Yet the economy needs the latter in serious numbers.

I have seen how little real exposure most young people have to the labour market. Career knowledge often comes from social media, television or family circles. Proper insight into real sectors and routes is patchy.

So, we end up with oversupply in fashionable fields and chronic shortages in essential ones.

Look at countries with lower youth unemployment. Their apprenticeship systems are structured, respected and clearly linked to jobs. Paid work and formal training run side by side. Employers help shape the standards.

In the UK, vocational routes are still too often viewed as what you do if you are “not academic”. Apprenticeships can be powerful, but the system is fragmented and the messaging is confused.

When the route into work looks unclear or low-status, young people hesitate. Employers hesitate. Everyone waits. Momentum dies.

Now for the bit that makes people twitch.

Many employers tell me young recruits struggle with basic work habits. Turning up on time. Calling out if they are ill. Sticking with a job when it stops being exciting. Communicating professionally.

These are not advanced skills. They are non-negotiables.

But we rarely teach them explicitly. Schools focus on grades. Parents juggle their own pressures. Employers assume these behaviours come pre-installed.

When they do not, frustration builds.

The longer a young person is out of work or school, the harder it becomes to re-enter the workforce or education. Confidence drops. Health issues rise. Motivation fades. I have met bright, capable young candidates already bearing the scars of drift and rejection.

Employers blame schools.

Schools blame funding.

Parents blame the system.

Young people blame the economy.

Government blames “complex factors”.

Everyone has a point. No one is off the hook.

Parents shape early norms. Effort. Punctuality. Finishing what you start.

Schools and colleges must treat work readiness and careers education as core, not optional. Real employer contact. Real labour market information. Not a token assembly once a year.

Employers need to look in the mirror, too. If every “entry-level” role demands experience, we are playing a rigged game. Businesses can simplify requirements, invest in training and work with local colleges instead of moaning about the pipeline.

Government sets the incentives. Funding for apprenticeships. Clear vocational pathways. Joined up support for those at risk of becoming NEET.

And yes, young people themselves still have agency. Show up. Take the less glamorous first job. Learn. Build references. Pride in work is not outdated.

We cannot copy and paste another country’s model, but we can stop tinkering.

Expand high quality apprenticeships tied directly to real jobs.

Embed work readiness and career exposure into the spine of schooling.

Make vocational excellence something to aspire to, not apologise for.

Create clearer, paid pathways from classroom to workplace.

Talent is everywhere. Opportunity is not evenly distributed.

If we want fewer young people parked on the sidelines and more building skills and confidence, we must fix the leaks across the whole pipeline.

Otherwise, in another decade, we will still be asking the same question and pretending we do not know the answer.

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Sarah Bishop is a recruitment and growth strategist helping start-ups and scale-ups build high-performing teams that deliver extraordinary results. She can be found here. Her best-selling book Scale Up! is available now.

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