Indicating that youths worldwide were among those most affected by the economic crisis, the International Labour Organisation has said the global unemployment rate was at a record high and likely to increase further.
Out of world's 620 million economically active youth between the ages of 15 and 24, 81 million were out of work at the end of 2009, which is the highest number ever, a report by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said.
The report said the youth unemployment rate rose more sharply than ever before during the economic crisis from 11.9 to 13.0 per cent, and the rate will continue to rise in 2010 to 13.1 per cent, followed by a moderate decline in 2011."In developed and some emerging economies, the crisis impact on youth is felt mainly in terms of unemployment and the social hazards associated with joblessness and prolonged inactivity," the report said.
"Numerous studies show how entering labour markets during recession can leave permanent scars on the generation of youth affected and, recently, fears have been expressed regarding a possible crisis legacy of a 'lost generation' made up of young people who detach themselves from the labour market altogether," it added.
The report also found that in terms of unemployment rates, the impact on youth has proven to be greater than that of adults. For instance, the youth rate increased by 1.0 per centage point compared to 0.5 points for the adult rate over 2008 and 2009.
"There are likely to be significant consequences for young people as upcoming cohorts of new entrants join the ranks of the already unemployed," the report said, adding that young women have more difficulty than young men in finding work.
In 2009, the female youth unemployment rate in 2009 stood at 13.2 per cent compared to the male rate of 12.9 per cent.
The ILO report also pointed out that in developing economies, where 90 per cent of young people live, youth are more vulnerable to underemployment and poverty due to shorter hours and reduced wages as well an overcrowding of an informal economy.
"In developing countries, crisis pervades the daily life of the poor," said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia.
"The effects of the economic and financial crisis threaten to exacerbate the pre-existing decent work deficits among youth. The result is that the number of young people stuck in working poverty grows and the cycle of working poverty persists through at least another generation."
The report estimates that 152 million young people, or about 28 per cent of all the young workers in the world, worked but remained in extreme poverty in households surviving on less than $1.25 per person per day in 2008.
