DANCING ON THE EDGE: CIRCUMSTANCES AND EXPERIENCES OF YOUNG NEETS IN THE CITY OF ZAGREB

The NEET population encompasses young people who are not involved in education, retraining or the labour market. The aim of this research was to gain insight into the experiences that members of the NEET population and professionals who work with them have had regarding the risks that lead young people to NEET status, and regarding their employment prospects. The participants were 15 experts and 25 young NEETs. Focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the purpose of data collecting. Data were analysed by the mix method. The main results have shown that young people see the reasons of their unemployment in their educational and professional qualifications that are not compatible with the labour market. They have also reported on insufficient support of public institutions they experienced while looking for work. Experts have recognized an incompatibility of the educational system and the labour market and this situation has been highlighted as a significant risk factor for young people entering the NEET status. They have also reported on insufficient institutional evidence and systematic recording of the NEET population at the national and local levels, as well as on difficulties in monitoring the NEET population. Experts have marked leaving the NEET status and the consequences of this status as a challenging effort for both young people and the society.