An analysis of youth unemployment in Turkey using generalized ordered logit approach

In recent years, the proportion of young population in the world and the total number of unemployed in Turkey is increasing. This has led to the concept of youth unemployment coming to an end. The fact that young people can not be adequately employed in existing jobs, the fact that economic growth can not create new employment areas and the decline of the quality of education has caused the problem of youth unemployment to increase and even reach the global dimension of the problem. Encountering the problem of unemployment in a period when individuals are most productive, most active, ready to learn and ready to develop, dynamic and strong leads to important problems both for the individual, the society and the economy. The inability of an economy to involve the young workforce is also a big contributor to the economy. Youth unemployment, in this respect, becomes a priority problem to be resolved. The aim of the study is to reveal the factors that affect young unemployment according to their education level. For this purpose young unemployment was analyzed by generalized ordered logit model according to education levels. The data were obtained from the household labor force survey for 2014-2016, which was implemented by TURKSTAT. The dependent variable; young unemployment is variable according to the education level which is composed of 4 categories, uneducated, primary, high school and university graduates. Independent variables; demographic factors such as region, gender, age, marital status, living on the shore, as well as job search channels and work experience variables such as applying for an employer, asking for relatives, applying for İŞKUR and applying for private employment. Findings indicate that those living in developed regions are more likely to be educated youth unemployed. If the gender factor is taken into consideration, women are more likely to be youth unemployed than men. When the marital status is taken into account, it is concluded that married persons are less likely to become educated youth unemployed than single women. In addition, it has been determined that those who apply directly to employers, state and private employment agencies are more likely to be educated unemployed than those who do not. Keywords: Youth Unemployment, Education, Generalized Ordered Logit