Here you will find some information on some developments in youth employment policy in France.

French President François Hollande was elected on 6 May 2012, and right from the beginning he asserted that he wanted to be judged on two issues: justice and youth. Currently one in four young people are out of work in France and the poverty rate for young people is twice that of the rest of the population.

The government has began to make proposals and an inter-ministerial committee will make unveil a finalised youth strategy on 21 February.  Two priorities have already been established youth: education and employment.

The Resolution calls on Member States to introduce a youth guarantee and for 25% of the European Social Fund to be used to finance the mechanism.

It is important to emphasise that in the Commission’s proposal it emphasised the role of youth organisations in the design and implementation of the Youth Guarantee. This must be supported by the Member States.

With regards to this Resolution, there will be a debate on it in the European Parliament on 14 January and a vote will be taken on 16 January. The full proposal for a resolution in English is here.

From the press conference earlier today, a very interesting speech from Commissioner László Andor on the Social Situation Yearly Review 2012. The speech was made at an event to launch the second Employment and Social Situation Yearly Review, which I will also send around. Some highlights include:

Plans for “youth guarantee” schemes to ensure that no young person in the EU is without a job for more than four months won strong support in the Employment and Social Affairs Committee on Tuesday. MEPs voted a resolution calling on EU employment ministers to agree in February 2013 to a Council recommendation that all member states introduce these schemes.

A youth guarantee is not a job guarantee, underlines the resolution drafted by Pervenche Berès (S&D, FR), but an instrument ensuring that all young EU citizens and legal residents up to  25 years old and recent graduates under 30, receive a good-quality offer of employment, continued education or apprenticeship, afte...