I’ve worked in the unemployment sector and even suffered from ‘the dole’ in the distant past.
My experience working in the sector was of trying to help people without the tools to do so.
There was a shocking lack of confidence amongst about half the unemployed.
Those made redundant or dismissed had particular issues.
Then there were those suffering substance abuse who wanted to break the self destructive cycle.
There were those with mental and physical disability’s who (like substance abusers) wanted work as they thought it would change their lives.
In many cases it would have done just that.
They all needed degrees of psychiatric help.
But there was no help of that nature.
It was sad seeing people applying for work they could have done but who without help in sorting out their private lives would have little chance of getting it.
The disappointment in faces when letting staff know their latest negative application was painful to see.
Those working in the sector now are in a grim situation. It’s probably worse now than when I was involved.
The unemployed are in a vicious circle.
Disappointment, depression, sometimes substance abuse, spirits dimming, giving up, even early death.
The answer is:-
More jobs than applicants.
Professionals who can be directed to people needing help.
For some the gift of a normal working life, isn’t possible.
For those who need a flexible, relaxed atmosphere, give them subsidised, work where they can meet others and build a decent lifestyle is the only answer.
Good thought provoking essay. As a boomer it cuts both ways. One the one hand, we have to be honest and objective enough to recognize that NEETs and young people generally have it much tougher now, mostly not through their own making. And that simple solutions based on "in my day" are not the answer. On the other, we also have to re-establish a societal expectation and culture that there should be very few NEETs. This does, however, also require structural change to enable the culture change. And we have to also get to the underlying issues and root causes of the massive increase in neurodivergence and all that goes with it - again honestly, openly and objectively.
Excellent article, Pete. I remember at the age of 19 while sitting out the seaman’s strike preventing me for leaving for New Zealand, I was enforced idle, having given up my full time job to emigrate. I enrolled with a temp agency and was given a job at a fruit juice factory, picking up boxes of fruit juice from the end of the line and putting them on a pallet. I lasted about three days. I told them they could train a gorilla to do that job. Today it is probably automated.
I suppose Andy the Handy-Wringer will talk about getting NEETS back into work but needs to recognise the damage done to employing young people and casual labour I particular with Reeves and Starmer’s disastrous NI and minimum wage hikes and then Rayner’s brainless day one employment rights. Taking these three ludicrous policies you’re left with only the public sector being able to afford to hire particularly young people. Remind me again who votes Labour?
All those who believe all our problems can be solved if we tax the rich to help the poor but sadly the truth is "You can NEVER help the poor by destroying the rich."
What proportion of the rich are rich because they engaged in entrepreneurial activity in a market economy or because they have unusually valuable skills?
Don't most belong to the parasitical rentier class?
I disagree but in any event the rich buy things people are employed to make and a country with no rich apart from the corrupt President is usually a shithole!
There are enormous surpluses of labour all over the world. The problem is there are too many people and nothing actually useful from most of them to do. Planned obsolescence is one of the many strategies to generate economic activity. Unnecessary "improvements" and bullshit "safety and environmental" regulations are others, and so on. The systemic problems of a post-industrial civilization are what causes NEETs.
This is the uncomfortable truth. There aren’t enough good, paying (or otherwise) jobs with enough variety to fit everyone. I don’t have a solution but it’s only going to get worse.
I don't think very highly of the third sector and would like it reduced in size, not subsidised with free labour. I would rather the NEETS subsidise the private sector.
What happens to the paid 25+ year olds in the displaced by this flood of free labour?
What do we do with the NEET who thinks the only meaningful job is blatant activism, the only skill worth having is social media and who expects to be paid no matter how little they know or do?
An interesting development on employment policy. The devil is in the detail, but I see no obvious issues getting from here to there. And helping people entering the world of work find their niche is an ideal solution. Providing services to charities at the same time is an excellent idea. I'd vote for this.
I’ve worked in the unemployment sector and even suffered from ‘the dole’ in the distant past.
My experience working in the sector was of trying to help people without the tools to do so.
There was a shocking lack of confidence amongst about half the unemployed.
Those made redundant or dismissed had particular issues.
Then there were those suffering substance abuse who wanted to break the self destructive cycle.
There were those with mental and physical disability’s who (like substance abusers) wanted work as they thought it would change their lives.
In many cases it would have done just that.
They all needed degrees of psychiatric help.
But there was no help of that nature.
It was sad seeing people applying for work they could have done but who without help in sorting out their private lives would have little chance of getting it.
The disappointment in faces when letting staff know their latest negative application was painful to see.
Those working in the sector now are in a grim situation. It’s probably worse now than when I was involved.
The unemployed are in a vicious circle.
Disappointment, depression, sometimes substance abuse, spirits dimming, giving up, even early death.
The answer is:-
More jobs than applicants.
Professionals who can be directed to people needing help.
For some the gift of a normal working life, isn’t possible.
For those who need a flexible, relaxed atmosphere, give them subsidised, work where they can meet others and build a decent lifestyle is the only answer.
Good thought provoking essay. As a boomer it cuts both ways. One the one hand, we have to be honest and objective enough to recognize that NEETs and young people generally have it much tougher now, mostly not through their own making. And that simple solutions based on "in my day" are not the answer. On the other, we also have to re-establish a societal expectation and culture that there should be very few NEETs. This does, however, also require structural change to enable the culture change. And we have to also get to the underlying issues and root causes of the massive increase in neurodivergence and all that goes with it - again honestly, openly and objectively.
Excellent article, Pete. I remember at the age of 19 while sitting out the seaman’s strike preventing me for leaving for New Zealand, I was enforced idle, having given up my full time job to emigrate. I enrolled with a temp agency and was given a job at a fruit juice factory, picking up boxes of fruit juice from the end of the line and putting them on a pallet. I lasted about three days. I told them they could train a gorilla to do that job. Today it is probably automated.
I suppose Andy the Handy-Wringer will talk about getting NEETS back into work but needs to recognise the damage done to employing young people and casual labour I particular with Reeves and Starmer’s disastrous NI and minimum wage hikes and then Rayner’s brainless day one employment rights. Taking these three ludicrous policies you’re left with only the public sector being able to afford to hire particularly young people. Remind me again who votes Labour?
All those who believe all our problems can be solved if we tax the rich to help the poor but sadly the truth is "You can NEVER help the poor by destroying the rich."
💯 agree with you.
What proportion of the rich are rich because they engaged in entrepreneurial activity in a market economy or because they have unusually valuable skills?
Don't most belong to the parasitical rentier class?
I disagree but in any event the rich buy things people are employed to make and a country with no rich apart from the corrupt President is usually a shithole!
Not all work is good work - agreed.
However, I lived my life on the basis that work is better than no work.
You never worked at PC World.
Haha, no I didn't but I had some bad jobs, the freezing noisy dusty miserable timber yard springs to mind.
Can't be worse than the pickle factory I worked in between A-levels and UMIST.
Hot purple vinegar is no fun.
& you never worked in a fellmongery/tannery.
Every generation has its best-worst jobs. enough with the apologia for a ballooning welfare (tax payer) funded bill....
There are enormous surpluses of labour all over the world. The problem is there are too many people and nothing actually useful from most of them to do. Planned obsolescence is one of the many strategies to generate economic activity. Unnecessary "improvements" and bullshit "safety and environmental" regulations are others, and so on. The systemic problems of a post-industrial civilization are what causes NEETs.
This is the uncomfortable truth. There aren’t enough good, paying (or otherwise) jobs with enough variety to fit everyone. I don’t have a solution but it’s only going to get worse.
All of your suggestions seem to require the British state to do things it neither wants to do nor is capable of doing.
As we discussed recently there needs to be an element of National Service in the job mix.
I don't think very highly of the third sector and would like it reduced in size, not subsidised with free labour. I would rather the NEETS subsidise the private sector.
What happens to the paid 25+ year olds in the displaced by this flood of free labour?
What do we do with the NEET who thinks the only meaningful job is blatant activism, the only skill worth having is social media and who expects to be paid no matter how little they know or do?
An interesting development on employment policy. The devil is in the detail, but I see no obvious issues getting from here to there. And helping people entering the world of work find their niche is an ideal solution. Providing services to charities at the same time is an excellent idea. I'd vote for this.