Over half of employers don’t think that young people are generally well-prepared for the world of work

Many UK employers believe young people aren’t ‘job-ready’ and lack important workplace skills, with a fall in earning and learning opportunities cited as a key reason, according to the CIPD’s latest report ‘Changing face of the youth labour market‘.

The report found that just one in four (28 per cent) employers who’ve recruited someone aged 16-24 in the past 12 months think that young people are well-prepared for the world of work.

It also revealed that 52 per cent of employers don’t think that young people are generally well-prepared for the world of work. Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) think young people often lack important social skills in the workplace, and more than half (56 per cent) think that young workers are more difficult to manage than previous generations.

According to the CIPD report one of the main reasons behind the poor perception employers have of young people is a sharp decline in opportunities to combine earning and learning over the last 20 years.

In response, the CIPD is calling for the UK government to introduce an Apprenticeship Guarantee for all 16-24 year olds, which would help many more young people to combine earning and learning and build key skills such as communication, teamwork and problem solving, while providing more vocational routes into employment.

Lizzie Crowley, senior skills adviser at the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development, said: “There are some fantastic skills and ideas that young people bring to the workplace, but there are also some significant challenges that they face in adjusting to working life. While studying for a degree is still the default choice for many, too many young people are disadvantaged because they have limited opportunities to develop an understanding of what’s expected in the workplace, or to take that first step into employment.

“There needs to be bolder action from the government to rebalance the youth labour market by making apprenticeships a viable alternative to university, addressing the collapse in apprenticeships in recent years. Currently just six per cent of young people participate in an apprenticeship each year, and we need this figure to be much higher. The government’s Youth Guarantee is a step in the right direction, but we want to see the government broaden out its ambition to benefit all young people aged 16-24 through introducing an Apprenticeship Guarantee. This will help better prepare them for working life and gain valuable skills, earn while they learn and give employers a skilled talent pipeline.”