<P> There are multiple and complex causes behind youth unemployment . Among them, the quality and relevance of education, inflexible labour market and regulations, which in turn create a situation of assistance and dependency, are the main causes discussed today . </P> <P> The quality and relevance of education is often considered as the first root cause of youth unemployment . In 2010, in 25 out of 27 developed countries, the highest unemployment rate was among people with primary education or less Yet, high education does not guarantee a decent job . For example, in Tunisia, 40% of university graduates are unemployed against 24% of non-graduates . This affects highly educated young females in particular . "In Turkey, the unemployment rate among university educated women is more than 3 times higher than that of university educated men; in Iran and the United Arab Emirates, it is nearly 3 times; and in Saudi Arabia, it is 8 times". </P> <P> Beyond the necessity to ensure its access to all, education is not adequately tailored to the needs of the labour market, which in turns leads to two consequences: the inability for young people to find jobs and the inability for employers to hire the skills they need . Combined with the economic crisis and the lack of sufficient job creation in many countries, it has resulted in high unemployment rates around the world and the development of a skills crisis . Surveys suggest that up to half of all businesses have open positions for which they are struggling to find suitably qualified people . One global survey found that more than 55% of employers worldwide believe there is a "skill crisis" as businesses witness a growing mismatch between the skills students learn in the education system and those required in the workplace . For many governments, a key question is how they can bridge this gap and ensure that young people are equipped with the skills employers are looking for . </P> <P> First, a high level of employment protection regulations causes employers to be cautious about hiring more than a minimum number of workers, since they cannot easily be laid off during a downturn, or fired if a new employee should turn out to be unmotivated or incompetent . Second, the development of temporary forms of work such as internships, seasonal jobs and short term contracts have left young workers in precarious situations . Because their jobs are temporary contracts, youth are often the first to be laid off when a company downsizes . If they are laid off, youth are typically not eligible for redundancy payments because they only worked with the company for a short period of time . Once this work ends, many find themselves unemployed and disadvantaged in the job search . However, some youth are entering work on a part - time basis during tertiary education . This rate is low in countries like Italy, Spain and France but in the United States almost one - third of students combine education and work . </P>

Describe societal responses to unemployment and workplace problems