Global youth unemployment rises to 12.4% in 2025, leaving 67 million young people jobless as AI and changing labour markets reshape career opportunities.
Global youth unemployment is rising again after reaching a two-decade low, creating fresh challenges for young people trying to secure their first job and build sustainable careers.
According to the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026 report, the global youth unemployment rate increased to 12.4% in 2025, up from its historic low in 2023. The increase means approximately 67 million young people aged 15 to 24 were unemployed worldwide.
The findings highlight growing pressure on young job seekers as economies face slower growth, changing employer requirements, geopolitical uncertainty and the rapid transformation of work through artificial intelligence.
Global Youth Unemployment Is Rising Again
Youth unemployment had been improving following the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. By 2023, the global youth unemployment rate had fallen to its lowest level in around two decades.
That progress has since reversed.
The ILO reports that the global youth unemployment rate reached 12.4% in 2025, leaving 67 million young people without work. The situation is particularly concerning because entering the labour market successfully is often an important foundation for long-term career development and financial security.
The challenge extends beyond young people who are actively looking for employment.
The share of young people classified as not in employment, education or training (NEET) also increased from 19.7% in 2023 to 20% in 2025. That represents approximately 257 million young people worldwide who were neither working nor participating in education or training.
Being disconnected from both employment and education can make it more difficult for young people to develop experience and skills that employers value.
Youth Unemployment Rises Again in More Than 100 Countries
The deterioration in youth labour markets is widespread.
The ILO found that youth unemployment either increased or remained unchanged in eight of the world’s 11 global subregions between 2023 and 2025.
At the country level, 105 countries recorded an increase in youth unemployment, compared with 58 countries where the rate declined.
The figures show that the problem is not limited to a small number of economies. Young workers across different regions are encountering increasingly difficult conditions when attempting to enter the labour market.
Arab States and North Africa Continue to Face High Rates
Some regions continue to experience particularly severe youth unemployment.
The Arab States recorded a youth unemployment rate of 26.2%, the highest among the regions highlighted by the ILO. North Africa followed with a rate of 22.6%.
North America also experienced one of the most notable increases between 2023 and 2025. Youth unemployment in the region rose from 8.3% to 9.8%.
Northern, Southern and Western Europe also recorded increases, with youth unemployment across the three subregions reaching approximately 15%.
These regional differences demonstrate that young people face very different labour-market conditions depending on where they live.
Sub-Saharan Africa Faces a Different Employment Challenge
For young people in Sub-Saharan Africa, the problem is often not simply a lack of employment but a shortage of decent and stable work.
The ILO report highlights the rapid growth of the working-age population in the region and the difficulty economies face in creating enough productive jobs to keep pace.
Informal employment is also widespread.
According to the report, nearly nine out of every 10 young workers aged 15 to 29 in low- and lower-middle-income countries are employed informally.
Informal work can provide an important source of income, but it often comes without the social protection, employment security and other benefits associated with formal employment.
For young professionals, graduates and school leavers, this creates a difficult situation in which finding any work does not necessarily mean finding a job that provides a sustainable career path.
AI Is Changing the Entry-Level Job Market
Artificial intelligence is another factor reshaping the employment landscape for young workers.
The ILO estimates that 6.1% of jobs held by people aged 15 to 29 are in occupations highly exposed to AI-related changes.
Clerical and administrative occupations are among those particularly exposed to technological transformation.
The impact of AI does not necessarily mean that all affected jobs will disappear. Instead, many roles are likely to change as employers introduce new technologies and reorganize how tasks are performed.
For young people entering the workforce, this makes digital skills, technological literacy and the ability to adapt increasingly important.
The ILO has called for a human-centred approach to AI governance so that technological progress supports young workers rather than leaving them further behind.
The Experience Paradox Is Making It Harder to Get a First Job
Another challenge identified by the ILO is the “experience paradox.”
Many young people need employment to gain experience, but employers increasingly expect applicants to already have substantial experience before they can secure entry-level positions.
This creates a difficult cycle for graduates and other early-career applicants.
A candidate may have a university degree or professional qualification but still struggle to compete with applicants who already have several years of practical experience.
Internships, apprenticeships, graduate programmes, traineeships, volunteering and project-based work can therefore play an important role in helping young people bridge the gap between education and employment.
However, these pathways need to provide meaningful skills and experience rather than simply shifting the burden of gaining work experience onto young people.
Some Industries Continue to Offer Growth Opportunities
Despite the worsening overall youth employment picture, not every sector is contracting.
The ILO identifies science, health and engineering among fields that continue to experience growth globally.
This suggests that young people planning their education and career development should pay attention to sectors where demand for specialized skills is increasing.
Technology is also transforming existing occupations, creating demand for workers who can combine industry knowledge with digital capabilities.
For job seekers, this reinforces the importance of continuously developing skills rather than relying exclusively on a single qualification.
What the Youth Employment Crisis Means for Job Seekers
The latest ILO findings provide several important lessons for young professionals and graduates.
First, obtaining a qualification remains valuable, but qualifications alone may not always be enough to secure employment.
Young job seekers can strengthen their competitiveness by developing practical experience alongside academic credentials.
This could include:
- Internships and graduate programmes
- Apprenticeships and traineeships
- Professional certifications
- Digital and technology skills
- Data and analytical skills
- Communication and problem-solving skills
- Industry-specific experience
- Freelance and project-based work
- Volunteering and community projects
Young people should also pay attention to industries experiencing structural growth rather than focusing exclusively on traditional entry-level occupations.
Skills Will Become Increasingly Important
The changing labour market means that career development is likely to become a continuous process.
As artificial intelligence and other technologies transform occupations, employers may increasingly value workers who can learn new tools, adapt to changing responsibilities and combine technical knowledge with human skills.
For students and graduates, this makes it important to consider not only what job they want today, but also which skills are likely to remain valuable as the workplace changes.
The ILO recommends greater investment in quality education and skills development alongside stronger employment services and social protection.
ILO Calls for Greater Investment in Young People
The ILO says governments and policymakers need to take action to reverse the deterioration in youth employment.
Its recommendations include investing in quality education, strengthening employment services, expanding social protection and creating more decent employment opportunities for young people.
The organization also emphasizes the need for AI governance that keeps people at the centre of technological transformation.
The broader message is that youth employment is not simply a labour-market issue. Persistent unemployment and poor-quality work can affect economic growth, productivity and social cohesion.
What Happens Next
The latest figures are likely to increase pressure on governments, employers and education institutions to improve the transition from education to employment.
Creating more entry-level opportunities, strengthening vocational and technical training, expanding apprenticeships and helping young people acquire relevant digital skills could all play an important role in improving employment prospects.
For young job seekers, the changing labour market also highlights the importance of being proactive about skills development and gaining practical experience.
The ILO’s Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026 report provides a detailed picture of these challenges and the policies that could help improve opportunities for young people around the world.
Final Thoughts
The rise in global youth unemployment is a warning that the recovery in young people’s employment prospects has not been sustained.
With 67 million young people unemployed in 2025 and 257 million not in employment, education or training, the challenge is significant.
At the same time, changing industries and technological advances are creating new areas of demand. Science, health, engineering and technology-related fields continue to offer opportunities, while digital transformation is creating a greater need for adaptable workers.
For young professionals and graduates, the message is clear: education, practical experience and continuous skills development will remain important as the global labour market evolves.
The future of work will depend not only on how quickly economies create jobs, but also on whether those jobs provide young people with a realistic pathway toward decent and sustainable careers.
Source
International Labour Organization, Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026: Back to the future.
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