Firms in East Anglia will be paid grants to hire more young people and apprentices under new government plans to tackle the youth unemployment crisis.
Businesses will receive £3,000 for every person between the ages of 18 and 24 they employ who has been on benefits and searching for a job for more than six months.
Meanwhile, small and medium firms will be paid £2,000 for every new apprentice they take on.
The government hopes the Youth Jobs Grant will support around 60,000 young people into jobs over the next three years.
It comes as the number of 'Neets' - young people not in education, employment or training - rose to almost one million last year, representing one in eight people aged 16 to 24.
Critics say the grants will only paper over the cracks after the government's £25 billion national insurance tax raid on businesses and increases to the minimum wage last year.
Employers do not have to pay national insurance on the salaries of employees under 21 unless they earn more than £50,270.
Firms have also warned that new rules giving greater protection to workers, coupled with further increases to the minimum wage next month, will put a "handbrake on job creation and recruitment" because of the added costs associated with hiring new staff.
Government economists have estimated that the Employment Rights Act will cost businesses £1 billion a year, once fully implemented over the next two years.
UK unemployment hit a five-year high at the end of last year, climbing to 5.2pc.
Meanwhile, the rate of youth unemployment reached 16.1pc, the highest level since 2014 and above the average level in the European Union (14.9pc) for the first time since data was available in 2000, according to the Resolution Foundation.
'WE CAN'T AFFORD A LOST GENERATION'
Candy Richards, who represents East Anglia at the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), welcomed the government's new grant scheme.
“No young person should be locked out of the working world at the start of their adult lives," she said.
"At a time of rising employment costs, and when youth unemployment has remained stubbornly high since the pandemic, we can’t afford a lost generation.
“The new incentives are a very positive, targeted step forward which will help small firms to give jobs to those on Universal Credit and to create apprenticeships.
“Small employers have always been the ones willing to take a chance on someone new, so the government has made the right choice to prioritise small employers for apprenticeship funding.
“Creating good opportunities for young people isn’t only vital for the individuals who’ll benefit, but also for small businesses, local economies and communities."
BRIDGING THE GAP INTO WORK
Around 1,000 extra engineering construction workers will be needed in the East by the end of the decade to build major infrastructure projects, such as Sizewell C and new offshore wind farms, according to the chief executive of the industry’s training body.
Andrew Hockey, CEO of the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB), has said the sector desperately “needs new talent”, with the region’s workforce forecasted to increase by 12pc in the next five years.
Reagit, in Norwich, is training the next generation of engineers, offering a range of courses.
Morgan Holden, head of employer engagement and business development at Reagit, said the demand for talent in the engineering and manufacturing sectors continues to grow.
"Across East Anglia, we regularly hear from businesses that are struggling to find skilled engineers and technicians, while at the same time there are many young people looking for opportunities to build a career," he said.
"Schemes like the Youth Jobs Grant can play an important role in helping bridge that gap by giving employers the confidence and support to invest in the next generation.
"When businesses are supported to take on young people and give them the right training and mentoring, it benefits the individual, strengthens local companies, and helps secure the long-term future of the region’s engineering and manufacturing industries.
"For employers across East Anglia, particularly within engineering, manufacturing and energy, this scheme presents a real opportunity to bring new talent into their organisations and start building the workforce they will need for the future."
YOUTH JOBS GRANT - EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
The government launched its Youth Jobs Grant this week to encourage local employers to hire unemployed young people.
Under the scheme, businesses will receive £3,000 for every 18 to 24-year-old they take on who has been out of work and on Universal Credit for at least six months.
The grant is part of a wider £1 billion youth employment drive, which ministers say will help create up to 200,000 jobs and apprenticeships nationwide over the next three years.
The package also includes an expanded Jobs Guarantee, offering fully subsidised six‑month roles for young people who have been unemployed for 18 months, and extra support for apprenticeships - particularly in sectors such as retail and hospitality.
The move is aimed at tackling the sharp rise in youth unemployment and the number of young people not in work, education or training.
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