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Long-term youth unemployment increasing, ONS warns

Latest data on the labour market finds that between June and August this year, nearly 13,000 more people aged 16 to 24 had been unemployed for more than a year compared with the same period a year earlier.
More than 12,000 young people have been out of work for more than a year, statistics show. Picture: Adobe Stock
More than 12,000 young people have been out of work for more than a year, statistics show. Picture: Adobe Stock

A further 72,000 young people had been unemployed for six to 12 months between June to August 2020, the figures show.

Overall, youth unemployment has dropped to below levels seen at the height of the pandemic with 498,440 young people unemployed between June and August this year - a 15 per cent decrease on the same period last year.

Youth homeless charity Centrepoint has raised concerns over the increase in long-term youth unemployment, calling on the government to reinstate the £20 universal credit uplift which was scrapped earlier this month.

Balbir Chatrik, Centrepoint’s director of policy, said: “During the summer, the coronavirus restrictions started to lift, allowing the retail and hospitality industries to welcome customers. It is not surprising that this has led to a welcome increase in youth employment.

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