The unemployment problem it is the main challenge facing the current Italian government. In the midst of the economic stagnation that the transalpine country is experiencing these days, the unemployment figures sound the alarm. In the first quarter of 2014, the unemployment rate already reached 13.6%, the most affected being young people between 15 and 24 years old. In this last sector, unemployment stands at 46%.
The government of the Prime Minister, Matteo renzi, presented last month a labor reform to mitigate these unemployment rates through the introduction of greater flexibility in temporary work. The purpose of this law is to improve the law approved just two years ago under the government of Mario Monti.
In April 2013, Monti was replaced by Enrico Letta, and in early 2014 Renzi arrived. All of them have defined unemployment as the most serious problem facing Italy. However, the measures taken so far by their respective governments to promote employment have not yielded the expected results.
Local experts have already highlighted on several occasions that the reasons why a large part of the Italian population is out of work are not as simple as those found in labor law. Its roots run much deeper than Italian politicians believe.
The level of unemployment in Italy it caters especially to a weak economy that does not demand employees. Without going any further, the latest slight signs of economic improvement, including an increase in the Consumer confidence index last May, it has not yet translated into a drop in unemployment.
GDP in Italy fell by 0.1% in the third quarter of last year, after which it grew by 0.1% in the following quarter and fell again by 0.1% at the beginning of 2014. This stagnation causes, among other things, that no one can truly find the magic answer to eradicate unemployment. Economic growth is very weak, so it is now necessary to give a new impulse in the short term.
The government of Matteo Renzi has drawn up an ambitious reform plan to revive the economy. Now there is a huge risk that this new impulse will not be able to stop the hemorrhage of unemployment. If the trend continues at this rate, by 2020 it is estimated that the unemployment rate could already be around 37%. A real disaster.
