Youth unemployment endemic in Europe

"No jobs for the young in Europe" leads the daily Politiken, which quotes Eurostat figures showing that one in five Europeans under 25 is unemployed -- a 5 per cent increase from three years ago. Taking the lead is Spain, with 45 per cent youth unemployment, followed by Slovakia, Lithuania and Greece. The phenomenon has not spared the countries whose economies were left relatively unscathed by the crisis, Politiken notes: in Sweden, more than 20 per cent of young people are jobless. Denmark, with an unemployment rate of "only" 12 per cent, has, for the moment, escaped. That situation may not last, and in the rest of Europe it will probably get worse, with long-term consequences, says Jesper Rangvid, a professor at the Copenhagen Business School. "When a large part of a generation is absent from the labour market, countries lose out on expertise and important experience," he told the Danish newspaper. And Greece, which will have to implement a drastic economic austerity plan to get help from other member countries of the EU and the IMF, is likely to face a massive brain drain in the near future – especially when it comes to young graduates.