Clockwise from top left: Sun Xiaowen, Trisha Nicole Miayo, Michael Asare, Fikile Lucie Moni, Hemant Singh, and Paulo Henrique Furlan.
Photographer (clockwise from top left): Raul Ariano for Bloomberg Businessweek; Geric Cruz for Bloomberg Businessweek; Nicholas Seun Adatsi for Bloomberg Businessweek; Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg; Zishaan Latif for Bloomberg Businessweek; Patricia Monteiro for Bloomberg Businessweek
Generation Lockdown: Where Youth Unemployment Has Surged
Young people around the world have found themselves shut out of the labor market—and the consequences could linger for years to come.
Carefully laid career paths that suddenly become dead ends, college degrees that no longer open doors, coveted overseas jobs gone in an instant. Whenever the acute phase of the pandemic eventually fades, the crisis will be far from over for young workers in emerging economies.
Worldwide, youth employment fell by 8.7% in 2020, vs. a 3.7% drop for adults, according a report the International Labour Organization published in June. Although labor markets continue to rebound in line with the global recovery, ILO’s researchers noted that unemployment data compiled by governments offer only a partial picture of the problems. Their report highlights a different metric, the share of young people not in employment, education, or training—the so-called NEET rate—which has yet to return to pre-crisis levels in most countries.