Youth rates will not solve youth unemployment: Next idea please!

The youth union movement, Stand Up, is calling on the Government to rule out youth rates.

Spokesperson James Sleep said “the Government’s willingness to cave to pressure from employer groups by putting youth rates back on the table shows they are out of ideas about how to address youth unemployment.”

"Research from the Treasury, Motu and the Department of Labour clearly states there is no link between the abolition of youth rates and the loss of jobs. When youth rates were abolished for 18-20 year olds, employment increased, not decreased. If the Government do consider this as a way to solve youth unemployment, they have chosen to ignore the informed advice of their officials and that's bad policy making," said Sleep.

Sleeps says youth unemployment has skyrocketed while National has been in office and their response to youth unemployment is leaving young people behind.

"The Government's cavalier approach to solving youth unemployment is going to leave behind a lost generation. Youth unemployment for the 15-19 age group has gone from 17% to 27.5% under National. This is a social disaster and a ticking time bomb that is going to come back to bite."

Sleep says the Government should start listening to the experts and put serious money into bold and direct approaches to get young people into work, education and training.

"The Government has ignored and pulled the plug on a cost effective initiative proposed by the Mayors’ Taskforce for Jobs which would have worked with young people leaving school to provide wrap around support to get them into future pathways. It's proven to work. The Government says it can't stump up the $14 million to fund it, but they continue to borrow millions each week to fund tax cuts for the highest earners. It shows where their priorities lie.”

ENDS

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