There can be no return to business as usual after the pandemic and no amount of economic pressure should force us to compromise on people’s health and the health of our planet, Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius said in an interview about the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and young people’s demands for a greener future.
He spoke to EURACTIV ahead of ViacomCBS and EU40’s ‘BEYOND 2020 – Global Youth: voices and futures!’’ virtual summit.
How does the Commission want to make sure that young people don’t fall victim of the recession that might be looming post-COVID?
Young people deserve all possible opportunities to develop their full potential to shape the future of the EU and to thrive in the green and digital transitions. However, we also know that young people often face a difficult start in the labour market, and this has been emphasised by the pandemic.
Sergei Stanishev
The Covid-19 pandemic continues to have unprecedented consequences. Our thoughts turn foremost to those who have lost loved ones. At the same time, the prolonged restrictions, necessary to save lives, are leaving deep social and economic scars.
Unemployment figures released by Eurostat show we are not all equal before the pandemic. While many can maintain stable employment from home, essential workers are under strain and many in precarious jobs have lost their income.
Young people are particularly vulnerable: a third of workers under 29 are in temporary employment. Many are in sectors, such as retail, catering and tourism, which are suffering badly.
Una Garantía Juvenil reforzada para salvar a la juventud durante esta crisis huffingtonpost.es - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from huffingtonpost.es Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Glasgow Chamber chief Stuart Patrick: Return to health crisis of past decades would be âhorrendousâ for city
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Stuart Patrick cited the âchronic public health crisis that came out of an economic crisis in the eighties and ninetiesâ Picture: Kirsty Anderson THE idea of Glasgow returning to a public health crisis like the one caused by the economic troubles of the 1980s and 1990s is “horrendous”, a business leader has warned amid the fall-out from the coronavirus pandemic. Glasgow Chamber of Commerce chief executive Stuart Patrick claims there is an implication, from what he sees as a central Scottish Government message that an economy can be recovered but lives cannot, that businesses do not care about the current public health crisis.