Some 7% of young people in the Netherlands aged between 15 and 24 have never had a paid job, new data from Statistics Netherlands (CBS) has found, however there has been a decrease in the number of young people not working in recent years.
The majority of young people that are not in work are currently in education or training schemes, CBS noted.
Employed youth
In 2023, nearly 1.7 million young people in the Netherlands were employed, while 510,000 were not actively working. Of the 7% that never had a job, the highest proportion was among 15-year-olds.
Among those classified as unemployed in this age cohort, 20% had never been employed, CBS found. At the same time, 40% of those not actively seeking work or immediately available have never held a job.
Additionally, 60% of unemployed youth reported taking part in recent work experience initiatives.
Studying emerged as the primary reason for not seeking work among young individuals, cited by 84% of respondents, ahead of illness/incapacity for work (10%).
Labour potential
However, there is an under-utilised labour potential among this demographic, the data suggests. In the fourth quarter of 2023, unemployed youth expressed a desire to work an average of at least 18 hours per week, while semi-unemployed individuals aimed for 15 hours per week.
The number of young part-time workers wishing to increase their working hours also rose. In the fourth quarter of 2023, 241,000 young individuals in this category expressed a desire to work. They indicated that they would like to work nearly 8 hours more per week, on average.
