Young People and Precarious Labour Markets

Young People and Precarious Labour Markets brings together leading scholars to examine how job insecurity and changing employment conditions affect youth and young adults across Europe.

Set against the backdrop of an ongoing polycrisis – marked by economic, technological, and socio-political disruptions – this book explores how labour conditions for young people and young adults are being reshaped. The essays collected in this volume examine youth transitions to adulthood, entrepreneurship, career development, and the pressure of passion-driven industries through qualitative and quantitative research, intersectional perspectives, and cross-regional comparisons. Together, the chapters diagnose the precarization of work, showing how it varies across Europe, while contributing to discussions on social policies, trade unions, and collective action, calling for urgent structural changes to address the challenges of contemporary labour markets.

As a key text for policymakers concerned with the future of work and labour market reform in Europe, this collection will appeal to advanced students and scholars of sociology, labour studies, youth studies, industrial relations, political economy, and social policy.