9.7 per cent of young people under the age of 30 are without a job or school, figures from Statistics Norway show. In many municipalities there are even more. Robin Hagen lives in Åsnes municipality in Innlandet. There are more than 24 percent of his age without having anything to do. – There are far too many. It’s not good for anyone, says Robin. He knows what he’s talking about. For 1.5 years he had no job or school to go to. – I applied for jobs, but usually didn’t get an answer. There was a lot of daffing and little to come up with. I became lonely and had no money to come up with anything either. Everyone can be depressed by feeling like this, he says. INDUSTRIAL WORKER: Robin Hagen studies the order. This day he will assemble many thousand-litre plastic cans at Schütz Nordic in Kongsvinger. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news Rejection of rejection Robin started high school after secondary school. First in construction. He went there for just over two years, but he did not feel that he had ended up on the right shelf, and lost the motivation to finish. Exactly the same thing happened when he tried his hand at the electrical line. He gave up school and went to England. There he had a few small jobs before he went home to Norway again after three years. As he did not have a high school diploma and did not have much work experience, it was difficult to get a job. Robin lost count of how many rejections he got, and many times he didn’t even get a response. The 26-year-old almost gave up on getting a job. He is not alone in that. VARIED TASKS: Robin has many and varied tasks as an industrial worker. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news More young people are dropping out of school and working life, according to a new report from Statistics Norway. For Olaug Meløysund, it took six years to return to work. – A huge problem Tonje Fyhn is one of several researchers at NORCE, who, commissioned by KS, has reviewed 150 research reports on young people who end up outside work and school. – If we compare ourselves to other countries, the figures for young people outside work and school are not that high, but what is worrying is that Norwegian young people are more vulnerable. They have poorer health, especially mental health. – We do not know whether they have become sicker or whether there are better tools for making diagnoses. Or whether there is simply a lower threshold for making diagnoses, says Fyhn. This is shown in the research reports on what is typical for those who drop out: Many have not completed upper secondary school Come from families with little education and low income From families with divorce and relocation Have a history of child welfare Long-term physical illness or poor mental health Have been exposed to neglect, bullying, loneliness at school, poor follow-up from teachers and poor grades Certain regions have many more young people outside than the rest of the country. This applies especially to the eastern parts of the country; Agder, Vestfold Telemark, Viken (Østfold), Innlandet, Nordland and Finnmark. – We don’t know why it is like this, but it can cause huge problems for the counties concerned, says Fyhn. FAITH IN YOUNG PEOPLE: – The key back is about finding the person who has faith in them. Finding the right person who sees the qualities of those who have ended up outside, says researcher Tonje Fyhn in NORCE. Photo: Gerd Johanne Braadland / news Many municipalities in the districts also have emigration and an increasingly elderly population. If you also have a relatively high proportion of young people who do not enter working life, this can create challenges, Fyhn believes. – Municipalities with an aging population and a high proportion of young people outside the workforce have a workforce that is shrinking at both ends. There will simply be fewer people to do the work. At the same time as labor is needed. This is a scenario to be nervous about, says Fyhn. Thomas Jørgensen is one of almost 100,000 young people who are trying to find their place in working life. Cross-border cooperation It is not just Fyhn who gets nervous at the thought of this. Jørn A. Stenseth is department director at NAV Kongsvinger. His region consists of 7 municipalities. 22 percent of those under 30 in these municipalities have no job or school to go to. Some of the municipalities have up to 30 per cent who have nothing to go to. – We have a challenge when 1,300 in their prime are out of work. We need their resources into the labor market, says Stenseth. CONCERNED: Jørn A. Stenseth, head of NAV Kongsvinger is concerned that many young people are out of work and hopes that cooperation with neighboring municipalities in Sweden can help. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news Now they want to cooperate with the neighboring municipalities on the other side of the border. The municipalities in Västra Värmland have the same problems. Through the SAIL project, the goal is for the 11 border municipalities that are involved to get more young people into work. – We have far too many young people outside of work and school. It’s a problem for them and it’s a problem for society. Working together across national borders can give us better opportunities to succeed, says Johann Mossberg, who works with young people in Arvika municipality. Recently, a conference was organized which brought together 170 people from both sides of the border. LABOR MARKET AND EXPERIENCE IN TWO COUNTRIES: – We can utilize each other’s labor market and benefit from each other’s experiences, says Johann Mossberg. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news Taking action Øystein Spjelkavik, a researcher at Oslo Met, was one of those who attended the conference. He believes it is good to put heads together to find better solutions. – There is no quick fix, but we have to get working life involved in this. Spjelkavik believes that no one can expect the young people to be ready for working life after motivational courses and schooling on sheltered measures. MANY MEASURES: Many measures have been put in place to get the young people outside back in. Nevertheless, there are many who do not get back into working life, Spjelkavik believes. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news – Employers cannot expect to have a ready workforce. They must motivate and educate them. Employers have many reasons to refuse, but they must be helped by the apparatus around them. Many young people just need a little help to get started, and will do well in working life if only they have the chance, he says. Got the opportunity That was what saved Robin. Because when the 26-year-old was about to give up on getting a job, an opportunity arose. He was offered a job in an industrial company. Morten Frantzbråten from Nav followed Robin in the early days. – It was very important for me to get the opportunity. Having an income and not least it is important for social life, says Robin. GOOD HELP: Robin Hagen has had good help from Morten Fratzbråten in NAV (in the middle) and Erik Platek, general manager at Schütz Nordic. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news Robin has now worked at Schütz Nordic for two years. First as a substitute, after a while he got a permanent job and is now one of the leaders on the shift. – I am very moved by Robin’s story. He has acquired a completely different attitude – he is proud and happy. This is a sunshine story. It shows that it is worth giving the young people who have ended up outside a chance, says Morten. Robin’s boss is also pleased. Erik Platek, who is general manager at Schütz Nordic, needs people who can work. He does not want to talk about the fact that it is more demanding to get people who have stood outside into work. – It’s just about culture. Those who have ended up outside must be given a chance. They give more than they take. It is important for the individual, but it is also important for us employers who need people, says Erik. – The job is more than work Robin understands that there are many employers who are reluctant to give the chance to people like him. – Those who end up outside work and school also lose faith in themselves, but we need someone who believes in us to make it through. Robin felt that both the support system through NAV and the employer believed in him. – Not least they gave me a chance to show what I could do. I am very happy about that, otherwise it is not certain that I would have been at work today, says Robin. MORE THAN JOB: – We are a nice group. Several of us show up an hour before we start work. We drink coffee and talk together. We also meet in our spare time. The job is more than a job. This is also where I have met many of my friends, says Robin. Photo: Ann-Kristin Mo / news
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Robin Hagen from Åsnes ended up out of work and school, but then he got a chance with an employer – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
