Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government fully supports the principles of the living wage and we are leading from the front by paying staff whose wage packets we control a living wage. We encourage all employers within the public, private and third sectors in Scotland to do likewise, but it is not for the Scottish Government to set rates of pay in these areas.

The Scottish Government recognises that young people from disadvantaged backgrounds find it more difficult to secure and sustain employment. That is why this funding will initially be targeted towards care leavers and young carers aged between 16 and 24, and will be flexible to ensure that young people who are most in need receive this support.

The Scottish Government recognises that in the short term underemployment may inhibit opportunities for young people to gain employment where employers offer existing staff full employment rather than recruiting new employees. That is why we are focussed on increasing sustainable economic growth to ensure that unemployment and underemployment are reduced.

The Scottish Government is currently consulting with a range of partners on the best use of the additional funding. Future skills demand will feature in these discussions.

Based on the latest available Labour Force Survey (LFS) quarterly data (July to September 2011), it is estimated that 82,000 people aged 16 to 24 in Scotland were underemployed. This was comprised of:

58,000 people who were looking for additional hours within their existing job at the same rate of pay.

24,000³ people who were looking for either an additional or new job with longer hours than their current job.

Source: Office for National Statistics

Notes

1 - Data is rounded to the nearest thousand.

2 - Data is not seasonally adjusted.

3 - A proportion of the people looking for new job with longer hours will not have cited longer hours as being the reason for looking for a new job, but will have stated that they would prefer to find a job with longer hours.

The Scottish Government has committed to consult with a range of partners on the best use of the £30 million in additional funding to support youth employment. With that in mind, final decisions on the targeting of this resource have not been made.

The Scottish Government is already working closely with both public and private sector partners to provide a comprehensive package of services to help graduates into employment. Over the last two years, we have provided over £270,000 for new initiatives. This has improved web-based services which provide advice and information on job vacancies; it has supported the development of the Talent Scotland Graduate Placement Programme that aims to provide business placements for around 750 graduates in Scotland; and it has supported graduate placements under the successful “Adopt an Intern” Scheme run by the Centre for Scottish Public Policy.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04748 on 18 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

It is for employers, not Government, to create permanent job opportunities. This Government will continue to work with employers from businesses of all sizes and across all sectors to encourage them to employ young people across all sections of our communities in line with current equal opportunities legislation.

To support young women entering the labour market, career information advice and guidance, provided by Skills Development Scotland, encourages them to challenge stereotypes and pre-conceived ideas about their career choice and to overcome barriers to progression in an appropriate and supportive fashion.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04751 on 18 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

It is for employers, not Government, to create permanent job opportunities. This Government will continue to work with employers from businesses of all sizes and across all sectors to encourage them to employ young people.

Through our investment in post-16 education we support young people to develop the skills they need to access and sustain jobs now and in the future.