Young people on the labour market in Poland and selected European Union countries

This paper presents the situation of young people on the labour market in Poland and in selected European Union member states. With the overall improvement observed on the labour market, the situation of young people in Poland and in many other EU countries has also improved in recent years. The aim of this paper is to identify the most important issues concerning the functioning of young people on the modern labour market, as well as analyzing the unemployment and employment rates observed for young people in Poland and in selected European Union member states. The analysis was carried out in the first part of the study. The reflection on the phenomena of devaluation of higher education diplomas and the prolonged period of education, which result in young people entering the labour market much later than they used to in the past is also crucial. The second part of this paper is devoted to the NEET community, which consists of young people who refuse to work, learn or train. The statistics, subgroups of NEETs and risk factors that increase the likelihood of being included in this category are discussed. It should be emphasized that people do not always become NEETs of their own free will. A situation in which an individual feels discouraged and unmotivated to engage in any activity, whether in the sphere of work or in the sphere of education, is largely conditioned by some social, cultural, institutional and economic factors. The final part of this paper presents the social and economic consequences of a significant number of young workforce being professionally inactive