On Friday 30 October, the Council of the EU adopted, by written procedure, a recommendation to modernise the Youth Guarantee, extending it to the under-30s and improving targeting of ‘NEETs’ (young people not in education, employment or training).
The new Recommendation replaces the 2013 Recommendation, launched following the economic crisis to offer young people a way into work (see EUROPE 12518/2). At the time, the aim of the scheme was for every young person under the age of 25 to be offered a job, an apprenticeship, a placement or training within 4 months of losing a job or leaving education (see EUROPE 10829/18). According to Commission figures, more than 5 million young people have signed up for Youth Guarantee schemes every year since 2014 and more than 3.5 million have accepted an offer.
The new version extends the Guarantee to young people under 30, and gives greater consideration to digital skills and the specific needs of minorities and women. It also maintains the four-step approach developed by the Commission (mapping the situation of NEETs, raising awareness among the target groups, an individualised preparatory phase, and the offer).
The text was adopted unanimously. The text can be found at: https://bit.ly/35Q0sZA (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)