Young people are more likely to be unemployed due to poor mental health

A report on Britain’s mental wellbeing crisis has revealed that young people are more likely to be out of work due to poor mental health compared to those in their early 40s.

According to new research from the Resolution Foundation, individuals in their early 20s grappling with mental health issues may have not had access to a steady education and can end up out of work or in low-paid, precarious jobs as a result.

The study cited data indicating that 34 per cent of individuals aged 18 to 24 experienced symptoms of mental disorders such as depression, anxiety or bipolar disorder in 2021 and 2022, a notable increase from 24 per cent in 2000. Notably, young women were 1.5 times more likely to be affected.

In 2022, 40 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds with mental health problems who were in work were in a low-paid job, compared with 35 per cent of their healthier peers. In addition, a third of non-graduates with mental health problems are unemployed, compared with 17 per cent of graduates with the same issues.

Louise Murphy, a senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, emphasised that there is a significant economic impact on non-graduates with poor mental health. “Attention on this issue has tended to focus on higher education, but what should most worry us is when poor mental health comes together with poor education outcomes,” she said.

“The economic consequences of poor mental health are starkest for young people who don’t go to university, with one in three young non-graduates with a common mental disorder currently workless.”

“To address this mental health crisis, we need better support services in currently underserved colleges, and much better provision for those resitting exams so that everyone has qualifications to build on,” she added.

Kicking off our event @_louisemurphy says that Britain has a youth mental health crisis. One-in-three 18-24-year-olds report having a common mental disorder, rising two-in-five young women. pic.twitter.com/RGwOO4JkO3

— Resolution Foundation (@resfoundation) February 26, 2024

The report, which called for the government to intervene, also highlighted that 79 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds unemployed due to ill health only have qualifications at GCSE level or below. For context, only 34 per cent of all 18- to 24-year-olds have qualifications to GCSE level or below.

“Policymakers need to focus on the building blocks of health, such as good employment and education, to ensure young people get the support they need and have the tools to move through the world as adults,” said Jo Bibby, director of health at the Health Foundation. “Without concerted cross-government action, we risk creating a ‘lost generation’ due to ill health.”

The study concluded that the government should prioritise supporting non-graduates with poor mental health. The Resolution Foundation has called for more extensive mental health support to be available in colleges and sixth forms and for more to be done to ensure fewer people leave education with few qualifications.