Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026

 The Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026 report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) provides an in-depth global and regional analysis of youth labour market dynamics, highlighting key challenges surrounding youth unemployment, disengagement, and job precarity.

Key Takeaways:

• Youth Unemployment Trends: Following a short-lived post-pandemic recovery, the global youth unemployment rate rose to 12.4% in 2025, representing 67 million unemployed young people globally.

• NEET Rate Expansion: The global rate of youth Not in Employment, Education, or Training (NEET) increased to 20.0% (257 million youth), with young women accounting for more than two out of three NEET youth.

• Structural Disruptions: The report sounds an alarm on the "hollowing out" of middle-skilled entry-level jobs, the growing risks posed by Artificial Intelligence (AI) exposure, and "experience inflation" in hiring processes.

• Policy Imperatives: It calls for adaptive policies centered on human-in-command AI governance, comprehensive Active Labour Market Policies (ALMPs), quality apprenticeships, and universal social protection coverage for flexible or non-standard employment forms.

Source : International Labour Organization