Approaching youth unemployment in Denmark: Focus on education

13 May 2015Ida SynnestvedtHead of SectionMinistry of Employment - Denmark

Key figures - Denmark

Population 5.7 million Labour force: 2.9 million

Unemployment (December 2014)All age groups Benefit recipients in total: 246,000 Ready for a job: 129,00Age 16-29 Benefit recipients in total: 72,800 Ready for a job or an education: 30,300

Unemployment rate development 2008-14

April 19, 2023

Ministry of Employment

Danish Agency for Labour Market and

Recruitment- 3 decentralized labour

market offices

94 integrated job centres for all job

seekers - Full responsibility of the

municipality

27 unemployment

insurance funds

Government

98 Municipalities

98 social welfare offices

Youth Guidance Centres

The Danish approach to youth unemployment - keywords Active labour market policies

Early intervention / activation and individually tailored efforts

Focus on education and upgrading of skills and qualifications

Social safety net / income security (cash benefits and unemployment insurance)

Since 2014: An explicit focus on young persons under the age of 30

The cash benefit reform

Entry into force on 1 January 2014

Explicit focus on young people by dividing unemployed persons into 2 categories:

Unemployed under the age of 30 without an ordinary education

Unemployed above the age of 30 (and those under 30 with an education)

Education: The key to labour market integration

Young persons under the age of 30 receive an education offer (compulsory to accept)

As not all young persons have the same prerequisites, they are divided into three groups:

Clearly ready for education

Ready for education within one year

Ready for activation (i.e. not ready for education within one year)

Thorough visitation1. Contact with the job centre

Final visitation after 3 months

Clearly ready for education

In special circumstances ready for activation

1. Interview after one week

C. Initiative

Ready for education

Ready for activation

A. Education offer

B. reading, writing & calculating test. Upgrading of skills if necessary.

Continuous follow up

Activation measures – young persons ready for education within one year

Upgrading of skills and qualifications

Short internships in educational centres

Mentoring

Practical work training in enterprises

Activation measures – young persons ready for activation

Coordinating caseworker at the job centre

Close and regular follow-up

Upgrading of skills and qualifications

Short internships at educational centres

Mentoring

Practical work training in enterprises

Positive effects from mentoring Effect evaluation based on an experiment in 13 municipalities in

2012-2013

2,593 young persons ready for activation* participated

Half the participants met with a mentor 1,5 hours per week, the other half did not

After one year, 16% of the participants with mentor support had enrolled in an educational programme

Only 12% of the participants without mentor support had enrolled in an educational programme

* Before the entry into force of the cash benefit reform in 2014, the term ”ready for activation” did not exist, the equivalent was ”match group 2”.

Building bridge to education

Cross-sectoral initiative: The young unemployed persons receive activation offers at a VET institution

Upgrading of basic skills in reading, writing and calculating

Enterprise training

Short internships at different VET educations

Mentor for all young persons through the entire period

Effect evaluation shows positive results

Economic incentives to begin an education

The cash benefit reform has changed the benefit system for young persons without an ordinary education.

Benefits for this group are called ”education benefits”

Benefits reduced to the same level as the state educational grant (SU)

Cash benefits:1,450 Euros - education benefits:800 Euros

Young persons ready for activation entitled to a supplement raising the amount to the equivalent of cash benefits

Is the reform working?

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Cash Benefits Education Benefits Unemployment Benefits Etc.

Thank you very much!