UK officials tagged the London 2012 Olympic Games as wanting to ‘Inspire a Generation’, yet young Londoners are facing the highest level of youth unemployment since Thatcher’s reign.
Young people in London now face a choice between joblessness or taking menial jobs. Aqib Raja is a 17-year-old who goes to West Herts College in Watford and spends 60 hours per week working as a chicken for a restaurant.“There wasn’t really any other jobs. But I need the money to go to college, buy food,” says Aqib.
When asked why hasn’t he found a proper job or training, he says: “I’ve tried but I haven’t heard back from anynone. I’ve sent 45 CV and nothing,” says Aqib Raja.
Nothing is the answer that thousands of other young people get when applying for jobs. According to the Office for National Statistics, nearly one million unemployed young people live in the United Kingdom. Many are looking to the government for leadership, but the issue still hasn’t been tackled enough. Ben Howlett, the national chairman for Conservative Future says it may take a long time for the numbers to fall to previous levels.
“We’ve seen decades of youth unemployment rising and it does take a long time for the numbers to fall down again. What we’re doing at the moment is getting the economy back on track, so more jobs are created across the board to ensure that more young people can get into those jobs. Secondly of all, we’re creating more apprenticeships. Not as many as possible, but higher-quality apprenticeships.”
But to this point, apprenticeships haven’t been the answer. In the past two years, more than one million young people have taken up apprenticeships, but still find their ability to find employment relatively low. A November report by Parliament’s Business, Innovation and Skills Committee notes apprenticeships must develop new skills, not just consolidate existing ones. Scott Oxlade says he agrees with the assessment.
“I believe that there should be a reform because my personal experience with apprenticeships was that I didn’t get sufficient training and I believe that the training is key for an apprenticeship. Without that is not very beneficial,” says Scott Oxlade.
With the lack of quality skills, coupled with the introduction of 9,000 pounds tuition fees, what options do actually young Londoners have?
Start-ups seem to be the alternative of choice for those disenchanted with the job hunt. Students today seem more willing to take a risk on building up a business rather than drudging through the long, challenging journey of finding a job.
“So what would have happened a long time ago is people had a job and that didn’t work out and then they decided to have their own business, whereas now, what we are trying to promote is think of business as an option rather than after working for 20 years and then deciding to start a business,” says Natalie Freeman, the Enterprise Manager at UEL.
Now, there is a place for young entrepreneurs to turn to. Start-Up Britain, a start-up in its own right, opening in March 2011, is willing to lend up to 2 and a half thousand pounds to any young businessperson with a good idea.
But a start-up can often be a risky business. The Growth Business reports one in 3 businesses will fail within the first three years.For other young people, they say going abroad is also a good option to consider. Anthony Carrey, a student at Westminster University, says: “I think youth unemployment is a real problem here and it’s of course very difficult to get a job here. But I think you should take advantage of being an European citizen, go abroad and find jobs elsewhere. There are jobs to be found somewhere,” says Carrey.
While others say people should try harder to get the job. Richard Masonga, another student from Westminster University tells us: “They will be applying for the wrong sort of jobs. They are just looking for any odd jobs and not persevering in what they actually wanna do with their lives,” says Masonga.
But perhaps the best advice is to look for solutions to the problem, rather than find someone or something to blame. One old man says using incentives rather than benefits would encourage more people to find a job.
“Find a job, then we will offer some incentive. If you stay in the job for a year, then there will be some bonus at the end or if you set up a business, then we won’t charge your business rates for a year or if you get a job we defer your tax payments. Something like that,” says the old man.
And while people continue to debate whether the government got its sums wrong again or if Britain bred a generation of unmotivated youth, the Office for National Statistics shows 66 people still chase every retail vacancy in the UK. And while evidence suggests Aqib’s future lies among the numbers, he risks becoming another of some call Britain’s “lost generation”.
By Tatiana Darie
