Dartmouth economics professor David “Danny” Blanchflower (photo by Joseph Mehling ’69)
The Prince’s Trust YouGov Youth Index in the United Kingdom recently released a report showing the impact of unemployment on young workers in the country. The report, featuring a foreword written by Dartmouth’s David Blanchflower, the Bruce V. Rauner Professor of Economics, reveals those out of work are significantly less happy with their health, friendships and family life than those in work. One in 10 young people claim that unemployment drove them to drugs or alcohol.
Blanchflower writes in the forward: “With graduates flooding the jobs market, those with fewer qualifications have been pushed down the pecking order – leaving those with no skills or qualifications even further from the jobs. Some of these young people have never worked at all; others have not been in work long enough to find out their individual skills. These young people are not lost - they are undiscovered. There is a wealth of dormant talent out there and it is our responsibility and duty to tap into it.”
Blanchflower is a labor economist who recently completed a three-year term as a member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee which sets interest rates for the United Kingdom.
This is the second year of The Prince’s Trust YouGov Youth Index and is the largest poll of its kind. This year’s results are based on interviews with 2,088 16-to-25-year-olds in December 2009.
