Those seeking a job are now facing stiffer competition from the younger generation. This essay will suggest that the main cause of this is high youth unemployment and propose free further education as a viable solution, followed by a reasoned conclusion.
The great depression of 2008 left a huge number of the world’s youth, particularly those between 18-25 years old, out of work. This has resulted in a massive number of people in this age bracket applying for every available job, whereas far fewer would have applied in the past. For example, in countries like Spain, Greece and Ireland, over 25% of young people find themselves without a job. However, it should be mentioned that most of them have little or no experience and therefore should pose no real threat to older people with lots of time on the job.
A possible solution to this problem is introducing universal third-level education. Free tertiary education would lift many of today’s young adults out of unemployment and put them back into the classroom, thus reducing the competition between young and old. Germany recently introduced this very measure and it has been shown to be an overwhelming success. Despite this, it is feared that there will be a glut of highly educated graduates in the future and this may only exacerbate the problem.
In summary, the financial crisis has not only led to millions of young people losing any hope of employment but also increased competition for jobs between generations. Governments should consider providing the youth of today with more opportunities for further study in order to ease this burden.