15 December 2011

Boris fighting youth unemployment with 100,000 apprenticeships by end of 2012

Boris Johnson continued his apprenticeships drive this week by calling on the capital's businesses to open their doors to apprentices and graduate trainees.

London’s jobs market is more competitive than ever - particularly for young people who can find it tough to secure even entry-level positions. Apprenticeship and graduate trainee schemes can help drive down youth unemployment by giving young people the opportunities to develop the skills they need to enter the jobs market.

Working with the National Apprenticeship Service, which matches would-be apprentices with employers, the Mayor is committed to growing London's economy and has already helped to create over 40,000 new apprenticeships for Londoners in just over a year.

The Mayor's apprenticeship drive - launched in November 2010 saw Mayor Johnson personally urge some of the capital's biggest employers to do their part to get Londoners back into work - has been so successful that he has now upped his target to 100,000 by the end of 2012.

To help reach this goal, Boris has committed the GLA Group to generating 3,000 apprenticeships by the end of March 2012.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: "It is getting even tougher for young Londoners to step into the jobs market. As the economy constricts they are being squeezed out and we are in danger of letting a huge amount of talent, energy and creativity go to waste.

"Work experience, apprenticeships, paid internships and graduate training schemes are all cost effective ways for businesses to tap into this potential and for young people to get the experience they need to get ahead. It really is a win-win situation for everyone involved and I’d urge businesses, big and small, across the capital to look again at the benefits of taking on a apprentice and sign up today."