According to ISTAT, in 2019, the employment rate of young Milanese in the age group 15/24 is 44% for males and 35% for females, while in the age group 25/34 it’s 85% for males and 75% for females (Assolombarda “Il lavoro a Milano. Edizione 2019”).
At the same time the so-called NEETs (Not in Employment, Education or Training), young people who aren’t studying nor looking for a job, keep being a worrying phenomenon in Italy. In Lombardy, where NEETs are about 11% of males and 18% of females, we are confronted with the paradox of an increasing number of companies that cannot find professional profiles with the specific skills they are in need of.
All these data refer to a period prior to the Covid-19 emergency and the new ISTAT surveys, referring to the first months of 2020, highlight a marked decrease in employment and a strong growth in inactivity especially among young people. As stated by the International Labor Organization, the consequences of the health crisis will be serious especially for the younger sections of the population. This is due to the “triple shock” that is simultaneous: loss of employment, interruption of education and professional courses, and the multiplication of barriers to access the labor market (ILO Monitor: COVID-19 and the world of work. IV edition, 05/2020).
In light of the current economic and social context, it’s clear that is necessary to start training and job placement courses for young Milanese. These classes must be customized according to the needs, aspirations and talents of the young people involved and adapted to market demands and employment prospects
The MiG-Work – MiGeneration Work in progress project wants to launch and implement an integrated and stable system of services aimed at improving the skills and supporting the employability of young people aged between 16 and 34, who are in a crucial phase of transition (eg. end of school period, job search, desire to change one’s professional or study path) and/or in a situation of crisis and fragility.
• Students attending the last 2/3 years of high school or attending vocational training centres, aged 16/19, with particular attention to those more at risk of dispersion and/or in territories marked by greater social and economic distress
• Young people aged 16/25 who have finished education and training courses and have not yet entered the labour market
• Young people and young adults aged 18/34 who study and/or carry out precarious jobs and who find themselves in situations of crisis or socio-economic hardship
Overall, the project will involve about 900 young people in support and accompaniment activities and about 40 youngsters in training and internship activities
Project activities
First, young people will be helped in gaining awareness of their attitudes, abilities, motivations and desires, and in focusing their goals by defining an individual strategy to achieve them. A series of consulting, orientation and skills assessment projects will therefore be carried out, as well as activities aimed at acquiring soft skills and promoting volunteering and active citizenship.
Secondly, training courses will be organized – favoring non-formal contexts and approaches, using “on-the-job” and “learning by doing” methodologies – in various innovative fields or those with good employment prospects. At the end of the courses, young people will have the opportunity to carry out internships or job shadowing experiences and to be supported in their search for a job.
Within the project ICEI is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the activities.
The project is realized by the Municipality of Milan, leading organization, in partnership with con Codici Ricerca e Intervento ICEI InVento Innovation Lab Cesvip Lombardia – sede di Milano Comunità Nuova Formaper La Strada Piccolo Principe Cooperativa Sociale e thanks to the support of BiPart and Fondazione Don Gino Rigoldi. The initiative is realized in the framework of the call “La Lombardia è dei giovani”, in collaboration with ANCI Lombardia and with the contribution of Regione Lombardia.