Some economists believe that the number of under-25s out of work will rise to above 1 million when the class of 2009 graduates next month. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) said recently that nearly 50% of employers it surveyed were not planning to recruit school leavers or graduates this summer.

The tide is definitely turning for our young people and it is yet to be seen how this will affect them. If they react like Generation X in the 80’s, then we may be in for increased drug use, crime levels and rebellious behaviour. The 80’s youth is said to have given youth a bad name by some, that other generations had to fix. This behaviour ended up with them being known as the lost generation and it looks like our Gen Y and Z could be coming to an end as the hero generation. David Blanchflower is warning that a million young people could now become lost in the system.

And the worrying thing is that studies have shown that a prolonged spell of unemployment for those just entering the labour market leaves deep, even permanent, scars. Young people have had a really difficult time over the past five years. They were squeezed out of the property market during the boom and now cannot get on the property ladder because of mortgage rates. They were the first group of people to pay tuition fees and now they are coming out of university to discover that there are hardly any jobs out there.

So as a parent, what do you do?

Well, I think we have to become creative and not give up hope. Don’t let the doom and gloom get you. Just because they may not be able to get a job in their chosen career does not mean they have to stop doing it.

• Is there a way they could volunteer and get experience?


• Are there any internships they could get?


• Is there another way they could get their experience out there, for example, blogging for people?


• Is there another way they could get paid for their expertise, other than a job?

The whole point here is for them not to give up and give in. Nowadays, the Internet can help young people get themselves out in front of prospective people with ease. 

Most of all, make it clear to them that sitting around all day is not OK with you.