English CV writing guide and best practices

Unemployment and Its Effects on Young People

The unemployment rate is one of the most important variables in the national economy and welfare of modern nations. Declining employment rates mean that the population has less money to spend on non-essentials, (and sometimes, even for essentials), and as a consequence, manufacturers and service providers have harder times trying to maintain optimal sales volumes. The reduction in consumer spending becomes part of an ongoing cycle in which revenue reduction in companies triggers more cutbacks on expenses including jobs, further reducing the number of available jobs and increasing unemployment. For young people, unemployment can be even more harmful than it is for older adults who become unemployed when they are already more established in their careers and their lives.

On a national level, countries with high unemployment rates experience increased emigration as young people seek to find employment in other countries. This can lead to a so-called "brain drain" in which some of the nation's brightest young people with newly-awarded college degrees take their talents and potential to other nations because there is no work to be found at home. Increased crime is another typical consequence of high unemployment rates and it is particularly an issue in relation to the unemployment of young people. Naturally, a young person who becomes involved in crime and ends up serving time in a penal institution for it has greatly reduced potential for employment and earning throughout life subsequently.

Statistically, young people who experience even short-term unemployment are negatively affected by that for decades to come. More particularly, unemployment during young adulthood corresponds to reduced earning potential well into middle age. Sometimes, unemployment precipitates a change in career for practical purposes or even the complete abandonment career goals when the need to earn a paycheck outweighs the need to develop along-term profession. Whereas older workers have already established a career to which they could return, when young people change careers early in life, that choice tends to dictate the course of their professional lives much more profoundly.

There are also negative consequences associated with unemployment among young people that pertain to personal health, happiness, and longevity. High rates of unemployment among young people is responsible for their continued dependence on parents and family long after they would otherwise have begun establishing independent lives of their own. In addition to the disruption of life for parents, this contributes to low self-esteem and lower levels of confidence among young workers even after they do eventually find employment. Young people who experience unemployment are more likely to experience subsequent periods of unemployment and to suffer from depression, as well as from higher rates of heart disease, shorter life expectancy, and suicide.