Concern expressed over low employment rates among young men

Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Anniken Hauglie ( Conservative Party )Oslo. Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Anniken Hauglie ( Conservative Party ).Photo: Vidar Ruud / NTB scanpix

The Government and Trade Unions are concerned about the declining employment rate among young men, fearing it will lead to anger and frustration.

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) leader, Gerd Kristiansen, and work minister, Anniken Hauglie of Høyre (H), fear a rise of ‘Trump conditions,’ according to the newspaper Klassekampen.

‘In the United States, we see angry white men who choose extremist politics. It is important to ensure that the employment rate is high among this group. Norway has a completely different situation to the United States, but one should not underestimate the trends that may occur when unemployment rises’, said Anniken Hauglie.

When she spoke to the LO ‘Stats Cartel Conference’, she pointed out that increased unemployment among young men elsewhere in Europe had led to the increased risk of aggression and demonstrations.

‘I don’t think we’ve reached this point in Norway, but one should be sensitive to signs. That’s why it is so important to facilitate the creation of new jobs, and ensure that more students complete their school career’, said the Minister.

Gerd Kristiansen is also concerned about developments occurring in the U.S.A. and Europe.

‘There is an angry working class who are protesting. It is important that we raise a cautionary finger to the political parties’, said the LO boss to Klassekampen.

She said that it is ‘our people who have become pro-Trump: ordinary cleaners, railway workers, postal workers, and industrial employees; desperate working people.’

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today