Young people on Universal Credit aged between 16-24 will be offered six-month work placements with wages paid by the government.
An innovative new 'Kickstart' scheme to help young people into work and spur Britain’s economic revival was launched by the government today.
Businesses are now able to sign up to be part of the landmark £2 billion Kickstart scheme, which offers opportunities for young people by sponsoring high-quality jobs and work schemes across the UK. Household names including Tesco have already pledged to offer Kickstart jobs.
Under the scheme, announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak as part of his Plan for Jobs, employers can offer a six-month work placement to youngsters aged 16-24 who are claiming Universal Credit.
The government will fully fund each “Kickstart” job - paying 100% of the age-relevant National Minimum Wage, National Insurance and pension contributions for 25 hours a week.
Employers will be able to top up this wage, while the government will also pay employers £1500 to set up support and training for people on a Kickstart placement, as well as helping pay for uniforms and other set up costs. The jobs will give young people – who are more likely to have been furloughed, with many working in sectors disproportionately hit by the pandemic - the opportunity to build their skills in the workplace and to gain experience to improve their chances of finding long-term work.
Welcoming the scheme, James Wild MP said -
This is an opportunity to kickstart the careers of thousands of young people struggling to make their way in the wake of Coronavirus.
I encourage firms in West Norfolk to apply to be part of this scheme and help young people. For young people, I recommend they get in touch with their local Jobcentre and talk about local opportunities.
Businesses of all sizes can apply and there is no cap on the number of places available. Employers offering fewer than 30 placements will be asked to make a bid through an intermediary, such as a Local Authority or Chamber of Commerce, who will then bid for 30 or more placements as a combined bid from several businesses. This will make the process easier and less labour intensive to apply for smaller companies who only want to hire one or two Kickstarters.
Young people will be referred into the new roles through their Jobcentre Plus work coach with the first Kickstarts expected to begin at the start of November.
Background
The Kickstart scheme was announced in July as part of the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs, which set out the biggest package of support for youth unemployment in decades – including tripling the number of traineeships, incentivising employers to hire more apprentices through a £2,000 payment to employers for every apprentice they hire under the age of 25 and investing in our National Careers Service so people can receive bespoke advice on training and work.
Around 700,000 young people are set to leave education and enter the job market this year, with a quarter of a million more people aged under 25 claiming unemployment benefits since March – with youth unemployment having a long-term impact on jobs and wages.
Young people are usually amongst the worst hit by financial crises, and unemployment can have longstanding implications for their future jobs and wages. We know people are leaving education into an extremely difficult jobs market, we know that young people are more likely to have been furloughed, so the government are stepping in to provide more help.
Employers can find more information about the Kickstart scheme: gov.uk/kickstart
