Jongerenambassadeurs

STRUCTURED DIALOGUE ON YOUTH EMPLOYMENT

Introduction to the three Belgian reports

The three Belgian Youth Councils have organised three separate consultations, one in each Community as Youth Policy is exclusively a Community competency in Belgium.
The important common topics the three Belgian youth councils want to stress are the following:

-       Difficulty to get a first job when you don’t have working experience;
-       The experience and competences gained in volunteering, scholar internships… aren’t valued as working experience and formally recognised;
-       Information in many fields doesn’t reach young people (about studies, workers rights, self-employment, socio-professional integration…) and the guidance is often insufficient and/or does not fit the needs of young people;
-       The education system doesn’t prepare young people enough to the labour market (information on studies and labour market, social skills, learning to live in a changing environment, lack of practical training…);
-       Too much young people have come to look at work only as means of earning money because the current situation of the labour market doesn’t allow to see it differently;
-       Precariousness of many contracts offered to young people (short term, unwanted interim and part-time…);
-       The participation in corporate life and unions is difficult for young people due to precarious contracts or conditions, fear of loosing their job…
-       Young unemployed people are often stigmatised and the approach of the employment offices gives the impression to be more controlling than supportive;
-       Young people face discrimination not only regarding age, but also regarding ethnicity, language knowledge, gender…

We would also like to add the general remark that we realised while consulting young people at local level that their preoccupations were really far from the priorities presented in the EU strategies which seem to concern more ‘high level’ profiles of young people (e.g. entrepreneurship, European mobility never came up but rather local public transportation…).

The consultation in the three Communities gave some deeper insight on all topics described above and specific ones, with respect to the different situations. You’ll find the three reports in annex.

Made on the 15^th of March by the three Belgian Youth Councils:
Conseil de la Jeunesse de la Communauté française
Rat der deutschsprachigen Jugend
Vlaamse Jeugdraad

Dat de jeugdwerkloosheid de pan uitswingt, is geen nieuws. Europa blijft niet bij de pakken zitten en wil de komende jaren meer investeren in jongeren. Maar dat kan niet zonder de wijze raad van het jonge Europese volkje. Daarom is de Vlaamse Jeugdraad op zoek naar  JONGERENAMBASSADEURS (m/v) met engagement.

Ben jij de m/v met engagement die wij zoeken?

Vul dan als de bliksem het kandidatenformulier in (ten laatste op 10 februari 2010).

De kick-off vindt plaats op vrijdag 19 februari (17 tot 20u) in Brussel.