What Guarantees Should Society Offer its Youth?

Abstract

Criticising the concept of a ‘youth guarantee’ as it was understood by the OECD in the 1990s and recently again by the European Community, the author argues that just more schooling and training will not help, let alone guarantee a future for disadvantaged, unemployed young people. Rather any policy that wants to help youth to become creative, skilful, self-reliant and ultimately successful must address the bigger problems of society and the economic and financial systems. Only when the larger environment is changed – and the author recognises that this change will not be a quick fix but take many years, even decades – is there a chance for young people to use their talents and initiative to become innovative, creative and engaged, not just in the labour market and economic system but in society.