Member Article

Government "must tackle rising graduate unemployment"

The government is being urged to create 5000 new intern placements to help tackle graduate unemployment.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) wants to see small businesses take on more graduate placement students, and is recommending that the government allocate funding to such placements, making the proposition more attractive to small firms.

The FSB has recently carried out research which shows that more than 20% of small firms would take on a graduate, but that nearly 45% don’t know that they can run internships schemes.

Colin Stratton, FSB North East Regional Chairman said: “Graduate unemployment is set to soar to unprecedented levels this year as businesses struggle to make ends meet and cut back on recruiting university leavers. However, in a graduate internship scheme, graduates can offer key skills to help North East businesses move forward whilst ensuring they are learning new skills and not unemployed at a crucial time in their careers.

The FSB wants the Government to invest £3 million of existing funds to market and develop internships in small businesses, creating an extra 5,000 placement positions for graduates in small firms.

Colin Stratton added: “Small businesses are the sector to create and retain jobs and act as a bridge to formal employment. Around 20% say they want to take on skilled graduates. The Government must invest in linking up small businesses and graduates now to prevent graduate unemployment spiralling any further.”

Nick Keeley, Director of the Newcastle University Careers Service, said: “The growing interest in internships is great news all round. They are good for the businesses, good for the graduates and good for the region. We are currently working with dozens of organisations, large and small, to help establish internships and we are actively looking for more to get involved - visit www.ncl.ac.uk/careers/employers for more information).”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .