National youth program

2.1. Young people on the labour market
One of the most significant reasons for the incomplete social integration of young people 
derives, among other things, from the process of their forced stay in the status of long-
term unemployed persons. According to scarce researches in Croatia, it was indicated that 
the unemployment as the main problem was pointed out by 40 – 60% of surveyed young 
persons, and in war-stricken areas even around 80% of young persons (Ilišin, 2005 according 
to Ilišin, 2007; Lugomer–Armano, Kamenov and Ljubotina, 2001). The majority of young 
people consider the low standard of living and lack of life prospects to be the greatest 
problems of their peers in Croatia alongside unemployment (Ilišin, 2007). Connected 
therewith are the concern about whether persons will even be able to satisfy their basic 
needs in the future and the lack of prospects in employment opportunities, professional 
development and living independent and productive lives.
High level of youth unemployment may lead to their alienation from democratic and 
political developments in the society. One of the preconditions for success in the combat 
against unemployment is good knowledge of youth behaviour during their search for 
employment, with the understanding of their view of society and institutions.
As globalization pressures on lives of young people become stronger, the global need for 
their participation in social, economic and political relations also grows. Since the working 
environment ensures possibilities for studying, showing initiative, development of social 
contacts and self-realization, it may be said that unemployment has an impact on the 
overall individual health of a person.
The latest information about 32% of unemployed young people (Analitical Bulletin of 
the Croatian Institute for Employment, 2007) is very worrying, and it is necessary to pay 
special attention to the unfavourable position of young people on the labour market. The 
structure of young unemployed people is rather heterogeneous: around 51% of young 
persons are female, 89% are single, 9% have children, 59% have no work experience, 36% 
are unemployed for longer than one year, over 90% are recruited from non-agricultural 
population, 51% live in urban areas, and over 80% have high-school, higher or academic 
education (Kerovec, 2000). What makes them less employable is the lack of work experience, 
and incompatibility of their professional structure with the needs expressed by employers 
in the labour market. A special problem is represented by young people with no work 
experience who have left the regular education system. Lower educational level of this 
subgroup of unemployed population certainly makes them even less employable.
Young people are a socially vulnerable group per se, but very diversified even in this 
respect. The most vulnerable groups of young people include youth with no professional 
qualifications, youth with disabilities, young mothers and young Roma as an especially 
vulnerable ethnic minority in Croatia.

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Young persons with no professional qualifications after leaving school often enter the circle 
of using social welfare benefits and finding short-term jobs which the employer does not 
register (“illegal employment”). A large number of employers register their employees by 
extending the temporary employment agreements, which may be extended, according 
to Croatian legislation, with the same employer in the total duration of 36 months. Such 
situation puts all young people, not only the ones without professional qualifications, into 
an unfavourable position regarding access to safe working conditions, agreed salaries and 
paying obligatory health and pension securities. This especially affects young mothers 
who often face the situation in which their employers refuse to extend their employment 
agreements in case of pregnancy.
Young unemployed persons with disabilities represent a very heterogeneous group 
regarding their educational and work characteristics and different education and 
employment accessibility. The elements of reduced employment opportunities of disabled 
youth in Croatia are related to the outdated educational programs, and to the use of 
incentive measures by the employers for short-term filling of positions where, upon the 
expiration of the original contract, the employer most often does not offer a new contract.
Roma undoubtedly belong to the most vulnerable ethnic minority in Croatia due to the high 
degree of their social exclusion. Social marginalization led to a kind of mimicry, the example 
of which is the fact that in the 2001 census, only 9,463 persons declared to be Roma, while 
UNICEF Office in Croatia estimates that the number of Roma is around 40,000 (UNESCO, 
2000). One part of Roma do not hold an ID card, which makes it impossible for them and 
their children to receive basic citizenship rights and enter education programs. Additional 
factor of unfavourable life situation is poor or non-existent public utilities’ infrastructure in 
improvised settlements where Roma live. According to available data, only 10% of Roma 
are included in elementary education, while the percentage of the ones included in high 
school education is negligible (Hoblaj, 2002).
Due to the high unemployment rate, and to reduction of general social standard, the 
position of youth in Croatia can hardly be compared to the social position of youth in 
highly developed European countries. They are mainly affected by the high unemployment 
rate and they mainly get employment in short-term jobs. The access to extensive and 
relevant information about various employment opportunities, private employment 
mediation companies, and additional trainings offered in the Croatian labour market, 
has been aggravated for them. Also, low employability is sometimes a consequence of 
personal characteristics of the unemployed, i.e. insufficiently developed skills of successful 
presentation of their capabilities to a potential employer.
The results of the research by the Institute for Social Research, Youth and European 
Integration Processes, conducted in 2004 on the sample of 2,000 young people and 1,000 
older respondees, show that younger and older respondees in Croatia differ significantly, 
because the older ones give more importance to ‘‘classic’’ qualities, while the young ones 
also recognize soft skills. Almost two thirds of older respondees consider that general 
education is the most important, followed by professional qualification with just over half 
of the answers. They are followed by communication skills and foreign languages with two 
fifths and one third of the older persons’ responses, respectively. It is interesting to notice 
that familiarity with IT technology with around one fifth of the responses is only on the 

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sixth place, after the ambition. Youth mainly, in about half of the cases, stated good general 
education, then communication skills, foreign languages, professional qualifications, 
ambition and only in the sixth place familiarity with IT technology.