The recruitment subsidy for young people has enabled employers to hire 42 young people in Kainuu-Koillismaa
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The recruitment subsidy for young people has provided young people in the region with opportunities to enter working life and gain work experience. As many as 14 young people have found permanent jobs.
In total, the employment area received EUR 236,171 in government appropriations for the subsidies. The Kainuu-Koillismaa employment area refers to the subsidy as a youth employment voucher. Head of Employment and International Services Milla Tikkanen is pleased that the employment area has been able to allocate all of the available subsidy funding to employers.
“There has been a clear need for the subsidy, and the employers’ response has been positive. The youth employment voucher has provided a concrete way to lower the threshold for hiring young people and open the doors for them to join the workforce”, Tikkanen says.
What is the recruitment subsidy for young people?
The recruitment subsidy for young people is a discretionary subsidy that employment authorities may grant to a business, association or foundation. An employer may apply to the employment authority for the subsidy when hiring an unemployed job seeker aged 18–29 for an employment relationship lasting at least three months.
The subsidy amount is 50 per cent of the young person's gross salary, up to a maximum of EUR 1,500 per month. The subsidy can be granted for six months, in which case the maximum total amount is EUR 9,000.
The subsidy has promoted the employment of young people from different backgrounds
Most of the recruitment subsidies granted by the Kainuu-Koillismaa have been granted to young people living in Kajaani. Of the young people who have found employment with this subsidy, 21 live in Kajaani and seven in Kuusamo. The others live in other municipalities in the employment area.
The young people are between the ages of 19 and 29. Most have completed vocational training, but there are also young people from other educational backgrounds, such as high school graduates and those without a degree.
Most of the employment relationships are fixed-term in nature. However, the subsidy has also enabled employers to offer permanent employment to young people, as 14 of the employment relationships are valid until further notice.
The subsidy lowers the threshold for hiring young people
According to the latest Employment Bulletin, there were 545 unemployed job seekers under the age of 25 in Kainuu-Koillismaa at the end of September. They made up 13 per cent of all unemployed job seekers in the region. The youth unemployment rate in the region was 17 per cent, while the corresponding figure for the whole country was 15.8 per cent.
Youth employment may be hindered by employers’ reluctance to hire new employees, the resources required for orientation and the fact that the skills of young people do not meet the requirements of available jobs.
“In a tough job market, young people may struggle to find their first job, as there are many experienced job seekers competing for the available positions. The employment voucher helps to break this cycle: the young person is given an opportunity to show their skills and gain experience, while the employer can recruit with less financial risk”, Tikkanen summarises.
Information on the recruitment subsidy and its application process is available on the Job Market’s regional pages as well as the employment areas’ other communication channels.