One in eight young Slovaks aged 15-29 is not in education, employment or training (NEET), Slovenska sporitelna bank reported, adding that this affects young women in particular, with 14 percent of them being unemployed. Young men are doing little better, with an 11-percent unemployment rate. The Slovak rates are just under the EU average, which is 12 percent. Romania recorded NEET rates of 20 percent, while the Netherlands recorded only 4 percent. Unemployed men outnumbered unemployed women only in Luxembourg, Finland, Belgium and Estonia.
The number of NEET includes short-term and long-term unemployed, disabled people and those unemployed due to family reasons. In 2021, 3 percent of young women aged between 15-24 claimed that they were unemployed due to family reasons.
"From the economic point of view, young people have a higher chance of being unemployed in the future, even in the next five to ten years. If they find a job, it's often one with low qualification requirements, which then hinders their chances of a pay rise," said the bank. The data show that unemployed young men are three times more likely than their working peers to suffer from depression and feel dissatisfied with life.
According to the bank, NEET aged 18-19 have about a 28-percent higher chance of being unemployed in five years than their peers. Unemployed youth also have a higher tendency to abuse alcohol and drugs.
Source: TASR
