Gaping hole in Rishi Sunak’s budget leaves young and jobless behind
Rishi Sunak made clear in today’s budget that protecting and supporting jobs remains the highest priority for the Government. This reassurance is vital. As we begin to plan for the future, the costs of the pandemic are becoming clearer and clearer. The toll will be immense and there is no group that has been as disproportionately impacted as young people.
With a tapered furlough scheme now extended to September, the inevitable threat of an unemployment crisis still looms over the country. Now is the time to be taking conclusive steps to protect the livelihoods of young workers, boost their employability and help accelerate the economic recovery.
The Government has already announced action to tackle the number of young people who have been forced out of work. The Kickstart Scheme, a programme launched last year, which we at Jolt are helping to deliver, provides fully-funded work placements for unemployed 18-24 year olds at some of the country’s most exciting tech companies.
But this leaves a considerable gap in support. Every day, I speak with 25 year olds who are turned away from the opportunity to join our Kickstart scheme, boost their skills and land roles with our employer partners such as Bulb, Bloomberg and allplants.
Today’s Budget did not provide a safety net for many young people who have seen their life chances massively dented by the last year of Covid restrictions and the economic fallout of the pandemic. Fresh estimates from the Office of Budget Responsibility expect unemployment to rise by another 500,000 jobs, to a peak of 6.5 per cent, or 2.2 million, at the end of 2021. Young people will be disproportionately represented in that number, as they have done throughout the crisis.
Those who are over 24 and newly unemployed – the ‘forgotten jobless’ – are not eligible for either Kickstart or Restart, yet are facing the same challenges.
It doesn’t seem right that we’re limited from helping these young people find jobs now, especially as we know unemployment numbers are set to grow as furlough winds down. Indeed, UK Plc has already announced significant job cuts. The closures of Debenhams stores alone risks 12,000 jobs, while the fall of the Arcadia Group has already resulted in 3,000 job losses, putting a further 13,500 at risk.
The answer lies in building training programmes that help people quickly adapt and transfer their existing skills to a new sector. The tech sector, for example, is growing fast, with around 90,000 open roles advertised a week, according to data from Tech Nation. Yet, over half of these roles are non-technical. So, no, you don’t need to know how to code. If you’ve excelled in customer service in hospitality, or marketing in retail, chances are you’re a top candidate for fast-growing tech companies.
Business and Government can’t leave the ‘forgotten jobless’ behind – we must rebuild together. The tech sector, working with the Government, can reach those left behind and help them start a career in an industry going from strength to strength. This would not only boost our economic growth and productivity, but also channel a new wave of diverse talent into the heart of our future innovation industries.
We can’t overlook that women and ethinic minorities have been worst hit by the layoffs. This is evident from our work on the Kickstart program – 59 per cent of people on the program are women, and 63 per cent come from a black and minority ethnic background. The toll of the pandemic has not been felt evenly, and our recovery must reflect that.