This report by UK Youth and KFC of over 4,000 16–25-year-olds across the UK and 500 businesses found that growing economic uncertainty and inequality of opportunity is holding many young people back from finding employment.
61% of young people say it is increasingly hard to land a job without a connection or a ‘way in’, whilst more than 2 in 5 (42%) say their dream job isn’t achievable because of their background.
Despite 95% of employers saying that their job application process judges all applicants equally, 1 in 3 (32%) acknowledge that it is hard for candidates to land a job without a connection with more than half (55%) surveyed saying they are more likely to hire someone recommended by a colleague, friend, or a family member.
Whilst employers recognise skills as the most important factor for a prospective candidate to demonstrate, the study found that a young person’s background, accent and even appearance play a significant role in whether they land the job.
A quarter (24%) of employers say they would be more likely to hire a candidate if they attended the same university as them, with this figure rising to 34% if a candidate shared a “similar background”.