new economy

　　

[Compiled by Xiao Quan on April 17, Europe Times] On April 15, French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou mentioned the employment rate of young people, stating that the figure was much lower than that of other European neighboring countries. The Labour Minister Astrid Panosyan-Bouvet also said again on the RMC program on the 16th, "There aren't enough young people working in France and it's difficult to get them into the job market." Facing the related issues of the difficulty for young people to find jobs, Anne-Sophie Alsif, the chief economist of Paris-based consulting firm BDO, provided answers in an interview.

Why is it so difficult for young people to find jobs, especially in France?

TF1 info TV reported that according to the latest data from the Ministry of Labor, in France, the employment rate of young people aged 15 to 24 is 35.2%, while in neighboring Germany, the employment rate exceeds 50%. Although it is difficult for young people in France to find jobs, some of them are still only willing to take summer jobs.

Regarding the reasons behind this, Anne-Sophie Alcif believes that first of all, many young people in France have the wrong direction of study and end up choosing a major that doesn't suit them. They leave the education system without obtaining any qualification certificates. Currently, nearly 150,000 young people in France fall into this situation every year. This figure is higher than that of other European countries, especially the Nordic countries, because these countries offer greater support for young people's employment.

Furthermore, although France has made progress, apprenticeship and work-study alternation programs are still more developed in Nordic countries, and work-study alternation students or apprentices have three times the chance of finding regular jobs compared to traditional students. Finally, it is worth noting that the channels for obtaining training knowledge in France are insufficient.

Young people have a less close relationship with employment than their elders. Will this hinder employment?

Facing this issue, Anne-Sophie Alsif believes that this does not mean that young people nowadays want to work less. Just like every generation since the birth of mankind, their wishes have only changed. Historically, in the 1960s after World War II, the older generation had already spoken of young people in this way, and what young people prioritized was women's freedom and job opportunities. In the 1980s and 1990s, young people were eager to develop management and higher-level training, and people flocked to universities. Therefore, it is very difficult to explain the problem of difficult employment with this factor.

How can we promote the career integration of young people?

Anne-sophie Arsif said that France needs to continue to develop work-linked training and apprenticeships. If young people drop out of university, it is necessary to be able to provide them with a guidance institution. For example, in Nordic countries, there are institutions similar to "France Travail". If they fail a certain course after one year, they can turn to this institution. They will help summarize the problems and think about the best way out in the future.

In France, young people only have the opportunity to obtain this kind of service when they are unemployed, but it is already very late. Another means by which Nordic countries are highly developed is to provide information on scarce fields. Young people who are undergoing retraining or have difficulty finding jobs will be systematically informed of which industries are recruiting before they receive training. For instance, in Germany, these young people have to undergo several years of training and will almost certainly enter industries with job opportunities. Therefore, if France wants to draw a universal lesson from its European neighbors, it needs to provide support to young people at a higher level in terms of training and employment.

 

(Editor: Guqiao)