campaign update 5
Campaign update n°5
Thanks to your engagement and your action, the campaign for a European Youth Guarantee continues to get more and more visible not only in Europe but also around the world.
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French President François Hollande has endorsed the campaign for a Youth Guarantee in a video statement. He calls for the implementation of such a guarantee at EU level as a way of providing jobs for the youth as well as investing in education and training of young people
- As a European Youth Guarantee seems more and more likely, the International Labour Organization (ILO) is now calling for a universal Youth Guarantee. Together with the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions, the ILO is promoting an online discussion on "Youth Guarantees in Asia-Pacific: Challenges and Opportunities” that you can join until November 19. The PES has already participated in an online talk show on this issue
- In Germany the Social Democrats presented in the Bundestag a proposal to put into practice a Youth Guarantee. Conservative and liberals in power, stuck on their austerity-only policy, rejected these progressive proposals, but our campaigners won’t give up and are preparing new actions
- The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions has released a new study on young people not in employment, education or training in the EU. The report points that the costs of having 33% young people without an occupation exceed 15 billion euros a year (with an overall cost of youth unemployment of 153 billion euro) and underlines the urgent need to put into practice concrete measures such as a European Youth Guarantee to reverse the situation
- Reacting to the Eurofound study, German MEP Jutta Steinruck called on the European Council and the Commission to prioritize long-term thinking in tackling the European youth unemployment and to implement a European Youth Guarantee. Evelyn Regner MEP also suggested that the Austrian flagship policy of a youth guarantee could be used at European level to provide jobs and/or training for young people all over the EU
- Campaign supporters in Bulgaria organized a debate on youth unemployment in Ruse. Participants shared their views on problems facing young people trying to enter the labour market; PES President Sergei Stanishev outlined how implementing a European Youth Guarantee could help tackling youth unemployment
- Newly elected leader of Portuguese Socialist Youth pointed to the Youth Guarantee as one of the best ways to bring youth unemployment down – currently 35% of Portuguese young people cannot find a job and are facing a very precarious situation
You too can let us know about your story; tell us how you are contributing to the campaign and join the thousands of campaigners calling for a European Youth Guarantee.
Remember, your support is key to tackle youth unemployment in Europe!
COMING UP
9-10 November
Campaign stand at SDLP Congress Armagh, Northern Ireland
30 November - 2 December
Getting Europe Working: Youth unemployment summit - Notthingham, UK
3 December
Youth employment in Europe – what works?; The Austrian example, Brussels, Belgium
Youth unemployment debated in Ruse, Bulgaria
On October 20 and 21st 2012, the Youth Union of the Bulgarian Socialist Party organized a discussion on youth unemployment in Ruse. PES President and BSP Leader Sergei Stanishev was a key speaker at the event that gathered young people from local NGOs and Student Councils in Ruse University, as well as young socialists from all over Bulgaria.
campaign update 4
Campaign update n°4
Thanks to your work, our campaign continues to build momentum. Your actions continue to deliver great results.
Thanks to you the campaign for a European Youth Guarantee is more and more visible and is gaining more and more support.
- PES Women Annual conference debated the gender perspective of youth unemployment. Under the slogan “Combating young women’s unemployment” over 100 participants have analysed the specific causes of young women’s unemployment and discussed solutions to tackle it, such as gender budgeting, equal access to green jobs and reconciliation of private and professional life
- During the PES Congress ministers, experts and campaign supporters celebrated the campaign achievments so far (watch the video); We also committed to doubling our efforts on the campaign for the rest of the year
- French President François Hollande and Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann have given us an enormous boost by publicly speaking out for a European Youth Guarantee
- During the open days of the Committee of the Regions, the PES Group organized a full day workshop on youth unemployment. Watch the videos of high level regional representatives giving their support
- In Belgium, MEP Frédéric Daerden presented the campaign to young socialists gathering in Herstal
- In Bulgaria, campaign supporters from all over the country gathered in Yambol to debate how to stop youth emigration due to the lack of work and how young people can find jobs in times of crisis
You too can join the thousands of campaigners calling for a European Youth Guarantee. Remember, your support is key to tackle youth unemployment in Europe!
COMING UP
20 October
"The Alternatives to Austerity Debated" - Durham, UK
26 October
Meeting on Youth Guarantee - Clermont Ferrand, France
30 November - 1 October
"Real jobs guarantee" conference - Notthingham, UK
Youth Unemployment During Crisis
Young people from all over Bulgaria debated for more than two hours how to stop youth emigration, how young people can start their professional career and how can we find jobs in times of crisis at the discussion “Youth Unemployment During Crisis”, organized by the BSP Youth Union in Yambol on the 7th of October 2012.
Campaign update #2 - Youth Guarantee campaign hits the road - Spain, Portugal, Ireland & Bulgaria
Campaign update n°2
Last week we told you about the progress of the European Youth Guarantee campaign over the summer.
The support for a European Youth Guarantee is growing by the day and campaigners like you are now organizing events all over Europe to promote it:
- In Spain and in Portugal, PSOE and PS presented in their national parliaments draft resolutions to make the Youth Guarantee a reality in their countries. The conservative governments, stuck on their austerity ways, rejected these progressive proposals, but our campaigners won’t give up; they will present the Youth Guarantee to trade unions, NGOs and civil society associations in order to create public pressure to implement it.
- In Ireland, on September 8th, Labour Youth gathered numerous of participants in a seminar to discuss how to reverse the high level of youth unemployment (1 out of 3 young people can’t find a job) and stop the emigration of youth. The speakers - including Minister for Education and Skills Ruairi Quinn, Emer Costello MEP and John Lyons MP - and the audience concluded that a Youth Guarantee can be part of the solution and make a difference to the lives of young people in Ireland.
- Also on September 8th Bulgarian campaigners organized a meeting near Plovdiv, the second biggest city of Bulgaria. Among the conclusions, the participants proposed that the years spent studying are taken into account for pension purposes.
At EU level, thanks to the commitment of Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs, Laszlo Andor, the European Commission has put forward a concrete funding opportunity to introduce youth guarantees.
You too can join the thousands of campaigners calling for a European Youth Guarantee. Remember, your support is key to tackle youth unemployment in Europe.
Check back next week, when we will have news on developments on France, UK, Finland and EU Committee of the Regions.
COMING UP
27th September
10.30-18.30 - PES Women Annual Conference - Combating Young Women's Unemployment
29th September
13h00-14h30 - Youth Unemployment Campaign meeting (as part of PES Congress)
Bulgarian youth discusses "Your future is my future"
On 8th of September 2012, some 100 young people gathered during the traditional socialist rally at the Koprivkite area, near Plovdiv, to talk about youth unemployment in discussion named “My future is your future” organized by the Youth Union of the Bulgarian Socialist Party - Plovdiv.
BSP rally debates youth unemployment
The National Rally of the Bulgarian Socialist Party took place in Buzludzha (central Bulgaria) on 28 July.
During the gathering, participants debated youth unemployment and promoted the campaign "Your future is my future - a European Youth Guarantee now!"
PES launches the campaign “Your future is my future - A European Youth Guarantee now!”
The Party of European Socialists (PES) today launched its flagship campaign “Your future is my future - A European Youth Guarantee now!”, which aims to tackle the crisis of youth unemployment in Europe. Currently, 5.6 million young Europeans are jobless, more than the entire population of Denmark. This inactivity costs Europe 100 billion euro every year. A European Youth guarantee, as being proposed by the PES could be supported by 10 billion euros from EU structural funds. This funding could help bring 2 million young people out of unemployment by 2014.