Invisible to the system. Neet have no idea for their future
Nearly every tenth young Pole remains outside the labor market and the education system – alerts the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development. They do nothing.
Neet is an abbreviation for English “Not in Education, Employment or Training.” This is a group of young people aged 15-34 who do not work, and at the same time do not learn or train. They remain outside the system. They lose their material stability, a sense of influence on their own future, but they fall into social isolation.
According to the PARP report, in 2023 every tenth young Pole (12.2 percent) included this group without an idea for his future.
Millions of young Europeans outside the system
As PARP argues, the phenomenon of Neet is not a statistical curiosity but a real social problem that affects thousands of young people in Poland and millions throughout Europe. People from this group are invisible to the system, and their potential remains unused. Countries that ignore this group risk slowing down economic growth and an increase in the burden of social assistance systems.
According to Eurostat, over 14 million inhabitants of the European Union, including 2.8 million Italians, 2.1 million French, 2 million Germans, 1.5 million Spaniards and 1.2 million Poles could include over 14 million inhabitants of the European Union. In Sweden, the percentage of NEET in the population was 5.8 percent, while in Romania it was 20.6 percent. The largest increase in the number of this group was recorded in Slovenia (from 8.7 percent in 2022 to 12.9 percent), in Lithuania (from 10.7 percent to 13.8 percent) and in Luxembourg and Denmark.
They are people who have the first unsuccessful attempts to work, and sometimes struggle with health problems. In 2023, there were almost twice as many women among NEETs than men (13.4 percent vs. 6.9 percent).
Creative souls with passion
The highest percentage of people live in Poland in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship (15.8 percent), Świętokrzyskie (13.7 percent) and Warmian-Masurian (13.2 percent). The least in Mazovia (7.6 percent). Where did such a division come from? In the countryside and in smaller towns it is more difficult to find a job and continue education. In addition, there are family, economic and social factors that may hinder the start of adulthood.
These are not clumsy or poorly educated people. In Poland, among people with basic education, Neet-Y constitute 8.3 percent, and only 5.9 percent among graduates. – lists PARP. Eurofound divided them into at least seven different subgroups – from short -term unemployed to people for longer involved in volunteering or developing artistic passions.
Among them are only parents looking after their children, people with health problems, graduates who cannot find a job that suits their qualifications and people who took a break after graduating from school. But everyone is threatened with a decrease in motivation to look for a job and permanent unemployment.
