On November 17, the European Pact for Youth was launched at the Enterprise 2020 Summit, a policy package through which businesses in the EU and the European Commission will create a culture of business-education partnerships to improve young people’s chances of getting a job. The programme will develop or consolidate partnerships in support of youth employability and inclusion between European Institutions and businesses, social partners, education and training providers, and other stakeholders. It is expected that 10,000 quality business-education partnerships will be established, with the aim of creating at least 100,000 good-quality apprenticeships, traineeships or entry-level jobs.

The role of the Commission

The task of the European Commission in this process will be to provide technical support to participating businesses and education providers in the implementation of the initiative. The Commission will also foster the establishment of cooperation agreements between companies and educational systems foreseen under the European Pact for Youth. As the Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Labour Mobility, Marianne Thyssen, explains, these agreements will increase the number of traineeships and apprenticeships offered by businesses, which will help young people access the job market faster as well as facilitating the access of companies to talented graduates. The results of the programme will be presented and analysed at the 1st Enterprise-Education Summit in December 2017.

The Youth Employment Initiative under threat

The European Pact for Youth comes at a time when the Youth Employment Initiative is under threat. The Youth Employment Initiative (YEI) was launched in February 2013, but the lack of tangible results has made Member States reluctant to extend the programme’s funding for the year 2016. The mechanism, equipped with a €6 billion budget, aims to offer all European youth under the age of 25 a job, an apprenticeship, an internship, or further education within four months of the end of their studies, or their registration as unemployed. The number of unemployed youths fell to 20.1% in September 2015, but in the worst affected countries, like Spain, Greece, Croatia and Italy, the rate is still over 40%, two years after the launch of the YEI.

The similarities between both programmes may give the impression that the EU is trying to replace the so-far unsuccessful YEI with a business-led initiative that requires much less public funds and involvement. However, Marianne Thyssen has stated that the European Pact for Youth is meant to complement the Youth Employment Initiative, not replace it.