Youth unemployment and education stalls

In September 2023, 42,800 young people between the ages of 15 and 24 in Denmark were neither employed nor in education, according to the Economic Council of the Labour Movements analysis based on Statistics Denmark data. This number corresponds to 6.3% of the age group, a figure that has remained constant since 2021. Despite overall employment growth and political efforts to integrate more youth into jobs and education, no positive trend has emerged. A parliamentary majority in 2017 aimed to halve this demographic by 2030 to 3.5%. Although the percentage decreased from 7% in 2016 to 6.3% in 2021, many young people remain out of employment and education for extended periods. Six out of ten young people unemployed and uneducated in 2019 remained so the following year, with nearly half persisting for up to four years. Extended absence from employment and education increases the risk of joining the unskilled labor market, associated with job insecurity and lower income.