COVID-19 has hit young people particularly hard. As so often in times of economic crises, the recession caused by the pandemic has aggravated the challenges young workers and jobseekers face entering the labour market. In the EU since the outbreak of COVID-19, youth unemployment increased from 14.9 per cent to 17.1 per cent.

The necessity for the trade union movement to renew itself in order to survive may seem obvious, but it is not always reflected in trade union strategies. To remain relevant and become more effective, unions must reflect in their membership the composition of the workforce they seek to represent. In most cases, however, trade unions in Europe are becoming older as the proportion of young workers in their membership falls.

This FES-EPSU Youth-report shows innovative trade union initiatives for recruiting and organising young workers, to ensure that they have a strong voice both at work