Young People Yearn for Jobs|年轻人渴望有份工作

Young People Yearn for Jobs

　　New generations of kids are out of school and unemployed, which has them feeling disconnected from society. They are a generation at risk and could be described as a scarred generation or named Generation Jobless.

　　According to a recent report, this problem has become a worldwide one. In Japan, an estimated 700,000 people, known as hikikomori, have withdrawn from society, rarely leaving home. In North Africa, restless youth were at the vanguard of the demonstrations that toppled governments in Egypt and Tunisia. In the United States, the still-faltering economy has been so difficult on Generation Y that there is even a television show, Underemployed, about a group of 20-something college graduates forced into dead-end or unpaid jobs. It is a comedy, but of the laughter-through-tears variety.

　　Official unemployment numbers are alarming. All over the world, young people under age 25 are three times more likely than their parents to be out of work. In Greece, Spain, and South Africa, more than half of young people are unemployed. Jobless levels of 25 percent or more are common in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. In the United States, the jobless rate for young people was 16.1 percent in April.

　　A look around the world shows how the number of young people out of work threatens the fabric of whole societies. Rather than tapping the energy, talents, and potential of a new generation, more and more societies find themselves dealing with idleness, restlessness, and frustration among large numbers of young people.

 

年轻人渴望有份工作

　　新世代的孩子不上学及失业，这样的情形让他们感到与社会脱节。他们是处境艰难的世代，也可被形容为伤痕累累的世代，或是称为『失业世代』。

　　根据最近的一份报告，这个问题已成了全球性的现象。在日本，据估计有七十万名年轻人脱离了社会，且鲜少离开家里，这些人就是俗称的『隐蔽青年（茧居族）』。在北非，焦躁不安的年轻人在推翻埃及和突尼西亚政府的示威游行中成了先锋部队。在美国，持续衰退的经济让 Y 世代的人日子过得相当艰难，甚至于有一个电视节目名叫《天生我材不管用》，讲述的是一群二十出头的大学毕业生被迫从事一些没有前途或无薪的工作。这是一部喜剧，不过却是苦中作乐的综艺节目。

　　官方公布的失业率数据相当惊人。全球二十五岁以下年轻人失业的可能性是他们父母的三倍之多。在希腊、西班牙和南非，有超过一半的年轻人都没有工作。在欧洲、中东和北非，失业率在百分之二十五以上是相当常见的情形。在美国，四月份年轻人的失业率是百分之十六点一。

　　看看世界各地年轻人失业的状况，这显示出该问题如何威胁到整个社会的结构。越来越多的社会发现他们都在处理许多年轻人赋闲在家、焦躁不安和充满挫折的问题，而不是在发掘新一代年轻人的活力、天份和潜力。