Ógra Fianna Fáil - Combating Youth Unemployment Document

[Sierra]

Ógra Fianna Fáil seemed to have created a "Combating Youth Unemployment" policy document recently (according to the Ógra FaceBook page), anyone have a read over it? Some of the suggested policies seem to be based on ideas that have been discussed a fair bit already in the recent past but there are some interesting (and ambitious) ideas all the same such as a "Graduate and Part Time Students Loan Scheme" and the like.

Interesting to see Youth groups actually publishing documents and ideas . . . I thought that was a thing of the past! Anyone know if this is the beginning of a trend and if more documents are on the way?

[Supermanpolitician]

We thought any element of FF producing a documents on jobs was a thing of the past.

[Digout]

We thought any element of FF producing a documents on jobs was a thing of the past.

Plenty of jobs for their mates though.

[Reality bites]

Labour Youth and Young Fine Gael both produced policy documents on youth unemployment last december

[The_Big_Fellow]

Unless it is a Jim Jones style final note, then I don't think it will have any positive impact.

[Greener]

Not overly impressive.

It lacks any true initiatives vis-a-vis dealing with costs of conducting business in Ireland. Employment will never increase until the private sector, and FDI is heavily incentivised. The withdrawal of Dell from the Irish Market highlights the real problems, and where the system is going wrong. Ogra are not interested in dealing with the minimum wage, which is neither progressive, nor liberal. It is also falsly asserted that a minimum standard of living has been achieved through the minimum wage. The minimum wage is a tool of rights, not an attempt to improve living standards. Disproportionate increases highlight this. It became a tool of popularity, and Ogra dont wish to rock the boat.

The work placement scheme would be fairly good, only it is focused on the public sector. Given the heavily beureaucratic nature of the Civil Service, and the prevalence of Double and Triple jobbing (in relation to jobs which are over employed) it seems that little or nothing could be gained from this, only a filler on ones Curriculum Vitae. If they are not truly needed, the disillusioment will increase. This is apparent in the plethora of young people I know, who have taken on voluntary work in an attemopt to alleviate the aimlessness of unemployment. It is key that these young people are given the full opportunity to utilise their skills, and I believe that the over-bloated public sector is the last place to do so.

It also seems heavily reliant on keeping people in higher education. While there is undoubted merit to this, it is not good if this is simply used as an excuse for young graduates to stay away from a strained workforce, and contine to seek local authority grants, rent allowance etc, as they do little or nothing for the real economy

It seems to suggest a socalist style job sharing system, which in tandem with the Co-ordination of working time directive, would see a state regulated employment system, and would not have any tangeable benefit to employers who would be forced to employ workers, who may not be as capable or as able as the existing employee.

It also articulates a support in "the National Assets Management Agency, and the Recapitalisation Programme", in spite of the fact that both programmes have proven highly questionable. The document re-iterates the need to get "credit flowing". This could have been done by virtue of a state bank, with a real desire to lend into the economy, while alleviating a certain amount of bad debts. Insted NAMA has simply nationalised the debt, while leaving the banks pumped full of state provided capital, which is being used to buy government bonds, without one red cent going to the real economy. The banks are suffering from stagefright, and are terrified to lend. It was the governments responsibilty to do so, but this has been abdicated.

Nothing has been mentioned about encouraging young people into the professions. This could be aided and abetted by the government, and would increase the skills of the youth. The same applies to possibly cutting vested interests which could be useful for employment creation. As has been well considered, almost 500 high end jobs were lost last week thanks to the Government's relationship with Aer Lingus.

The doucment seems tobe fairly tokenistic. It also seems to reflect some of the policies put forward in YFG's document from December. In fact the proposals of both are virtuallly the same.

[antiestablishmentarian]

Job creation for themselves more likely, they don't give a s**t about the problems facing students.

[universidy]

It seems the Ogra document is simply a copy of Varadkar's Hope for a Lost Generation document. Barry Walsh is claiming that Ogra are heaping flattery on Fine Gael policy.

Young Fine Gael

[Nugget]

Load of rubbish. FF are deliberately doing nothing to save jobs. This is because unemployment is essential to drive down wages. Driving down wages for ordinary workers is a priority for FF (after bailing out their mates in the banks)

[Concerned Irishman]

My Niece linked me to this a while back from Labour Youth. Not bad by any stretch, if a little lacking in focus...

It's good to see the Youth Wings engaging and being concerned with real issues again instead of just going on the piss and hooking up with each other