As a 16 year old male currently seeking work, I know first hand how difficult it is to find a job for young people. Any sort of jobs are few and far between. But on the rare occasion that I find a job suitable to apply for, I see that several years of previous experience are needed. How can anyone get a first job if all employers are seeking experienced workers?
This situation has discouraged friends of mine in full-time education. Many may lose interest in their studies if they feel their efforts in schools will be for nothing if no jobs are available upon graduation.
Steps must be taken to ensure that the youth today are not forced to pay for the failings of capitalism. Governments should not be rewarding big shot bankers who were responsible for the letting the economy crash and burn. They should use the billion of pounds being spent to bail-out the rich to create decent jobs for everyone. Education must also be opened up for all. University fees must be scrapped to allow more young people to attend university. The Assembly should invest heavily to launch a programme of public works to improve infrastructure, the building of more social houses, schools, hospitals etc. This should not be done through the robbery of public private partnerships of PFI. It should be a wholly publicly owned programme with decent pay and conditions and trade union rights.
Young people will not tolerate a life living in poverty on the dole with nothing to do. The Youth Fight for Jobs campaign is confident we can offer a way for young people to fight for their right to work. This crisis is not of our making and we should not have to suffer as a result. The campaign is planning to organise activities and events in the coming months and confront the politicians with our demands.
By: Patrick McGeown, Craigavon Socialist Youth 19 August 2009 If you would like to join the Youth Fight for Jobs campaign, contact us on 028090311778.
The general secretary election in Unite will take place between 25 October and 19 November this year.
"Dire", "terrible", "shockingly bad", "horrendous... an absolute disaster for the economy"! These were some of the terms used by City and media analysts to describe economic figures for the last three months of 2010 (released on 25 January). Government leaders, Cameron, Osborne & Co, blame the sharp fall in output on December's Arctic blast. But in reality Britain is facing a savage economic ice age.