New research from The Prince’s Trust Group of charities reveals that young people around the world are often overlooked and underprepared for the workplace. To fully understand the needs and ambitions of young people around the world in relation to the future of work, a research report was commissioned by The Prince’s Trust group of charities, with the support of HSBC.  

Through quantitative opinion polls, and qualitative focus groups conducted by YouGov, we sought to understand:

• How has the global pandemic and the rising costs of living impacted young people’s lives and livelihoods?
• What hopes and aspirations do young people have for their future careers?
• What support do young people need from governments, employers, and society to realise their ambitions?

Highlighting the Views of Young People

The results of the research demonstrate that young people are ready and keen to build their own futures. There is a growing trend of young people exploring opportunities to work for themselves (70%) rather than start their careers through more traditional routes, and the majority of respondents (84%) cited digital literacy as an important skill for future work. The roles that are of interest to young people are green jobs (68%) and digital jobs (63%). The research also showed over one third of the respondents (35%) thought the education system could be improved by providing young people the skills they needed for a working life. By highlighting the attitudes of young people about the future of work, the report is an essential tool to help inform our own program delivery and engage key stakeholders with the most pressing issues facing young people today.

Youth Unemployment – the Forgotten Crisis

Since the global financial crisis in 2008, youth unemployment globally has been stuck at levels in excess of 13 per cent, more than three times the comparable rate for older workers. In 2023, it is estimated that 70 million young people, over 14 per cent of the total, will be unemployed. This compares with a rate of 4.4 per cent for adults aged 25 and over. Australia fares better than the global average, the youth unemployment rate in May 2023 was 7.6 per cent, however this is still more than double the rate for all adults, which was 3.6 per cent (Australia Bureau of Statistics, July 2023). The Prince’s Trust believes one reason this situation has been allowed to persist is because young people’s views are rarely heard. Our research is designed to find out how young people feel about their prospects and to give them a voice in debates about the future of work. At the Prince’s Trust Australia we design our programs around the challenges and uncertainties facing young people as they leave education and look to establish themselves in the world of work.

Future Employment = Entrepreneurship, Digital and Green Jobs

Young people want to work for themselves, as well as in emerging green and digital industries. This suggests young people want to be agents of change and in charge of their own future. Young people recognise that starting a business is more complicated than taking a job with an employer. If these budding entrepreneurs are to realise their dreams and succeed, then they will need support. The Prince’s Trust recognises this ands helps to fill with the gap by designing programs to develop skills young people will need for work.

The Prince’s Trust Group is committed to amplifying the voices of young people and through the Future of work report series we have gained essential insight into the attitudes of young people to the future of work, the industries they wish to work in and the skills they need to make their ambitions come true. The 2023 Future of Work report marks the third in a series. In asking people for their views about the future of work for three years, enough time has passed to see a consistent picture emerge. The underlying causes come down to three areas:

1. There is a jobs gap: Not enough entry level jobs are being created for young people.

2. There is a skills gap: Too many young people are leaving education without the skills needed for work.

3. There is an experience gap: Some young people are struggling to obtain the relevant work experience that employers value.

The Prince’s Trust Group is committed to amplifying the voices of young people and through the Future of work report series we have gained essential insight into the attitudes of young people to the future of work, the industries they wish to work in and the skills they need to make their ambitions come true.

We must all work together to facilitate meaningful change. By creating more entry level jobs for young people, helping them acquire the skills needed to not only survive but thrive in the workplace will enable them to succeed in future of work. We are calling for partnership from government, business, and organisations like ours, to work together and ensure that young people have the right skills and opportunities to take ownership of their futures as the next generation of entrepreneurs, employers, and employees.

Read The Prince’s Trust Future of Work Report here.

‍