2. enuii said...

Love these quotes:-

'Josep Comajuncosa, a macro-economics specialist at the Esade business school in Barcelona, said the downturn may help the 'mileuristas' buy homes but it will not solve their basic problem. 'What is needed is a model of growth based on greater productivity and new industries primarily service-based such as IT, financial services and new technology which can raise salaries,'

and

'Freelance architect Emilio Tinoco Vertiz, 32, earns just €1,000 a month.'

and

'Some of the pressure to graduate also slipped away when I saw one friend get his degree and then only earn €500 a month at an Italian space firm and another get €800 a month at the European Space Agency,'

as well as,

'Aurel Thurn, 38, who works for an art gallery in Berlin and has top-level qualifications, 10 years' experience and speaks four languages fluently. 'I have enough money for my rent, my telephone and food. But that's it.'

We will see this in the UK, NeuLiebor has hoodwinked ever increasing numbers mediocre students over the last 10 years with the illusion that 3-4 years studying on a self-funded second rate degree course will lead to a good job and a secure future. Unfortunately the odds are increasingly against such an outcome which as the article states ''There is a potentially explosive combination of political disillusion with a fascination for politics. Young people are both deeply cynical and deeply politicised.'

Looks like there will be trouble all over the EU within 5 years.

4. Mytimeisnigh said...

I think that the government's target in Britain, is eventually for fifty percent of school leavers to go on to gain a university degree. In France, I'm told, this has already happened and as a consequence, there are loads of kids frustrated, unable to get jobs that fulfill their expectations (and those of their parents who really value the education system).

What is the point? There is clearly never going to be a demand anywhere for fifty percent of jobs to be graduate. At the same time short falls for trades like plumbing (which are often relatively well paid) are filled by financial migrants. I feel sorry for students leaving university, just starting out in life...... and already lumbered with huge student loans, with possibly no graduate job to go. Buying a property at the moment, for them, must seem like an impossibilty (because it is), add to this the burden of providing a pension, rising utility, food, tax and fuel bills and what hope is left that people will be able to start families. It just seems to me like people are being denied basic rights, to line the pockets of a greedy minority.

6. pendulum said...

Most graduates these days quit their subjects and chase the money, wherever it is. If you want to stay in your area, you do it for love of the subject. I graduated years ago with a top degree and PhD in physics. After competing with thousands of applicants for very few positions, and finally getting a salary of ~£15k in London, I decided to quit academia after still being in debt after 3 years. I took a job in "IT" with a bank - the work was so simple I could have done it at 16 and blindfold. However they gave me 3 x my salary for doing something I knew nothing about. I now have my own company and no qualifications in my market area, however to go back into science would mean earning a quarter of what I do now and no chance of much of a life. At the moment UK Plc does "services" and very little else. If you want money - you have to do what people want, and hopefully later do something you like. There are interesting jobs out there but typically you need to be financially sorted already else you'll be suicidal with debt.

8. Hyrax said...

I have been a biotech scientist for 20 years with 6 US patents assigned to American corporations that make milions a year from these inventions.
I got nothing for the first 5 of them and 0.04% of the sale from the last. Never had UK research funding in my name, and spent over 5 years of my "career" in the UK unemployed..
the UK has a toxic approach to scientists and engineers.. the UKX will ultimately reap a third class living in a global economy, UK plc should be very afraid.

10. Colllywolly said...

The funny thing is, that the baby boomers own all the property, and expect the daft prices to be paid by this future generation for their retirement . But this clearly isn't going to happen as this article points out. (I have listened to my parents tell me how much their house has gone up in value trying to persuade me that prices only go up and I should buy one - they shut up when I said that they should be happy to give a small fraction of their profits to me)

If historically house prices crashes have taken 3 or 4 years to bottom out, then surely this one will be compounded then by the number of baby boomers looking to retire and cash on their imaginary wealth.

12. pendulum said...

Hydrax - the straw that broke my camel's back was seeing the raises, promotions and cars of the marketing dept within my field - compared to the scientists' and engineers' raises and cars. Not that cars and money are everything, but the real brains were actively looked at as the bottom of the food chain. Odd that in terms of skills and education the reverse is true. Ayn Rand stuff - except I couldn't get the world to unite and sold out to the city. Blind Corporatism makes a lot of idiots rich - but there are also opportunities if you have a price.

14. japanese uncle said...

A French worker finishing his lunch (sandwich) at his desk in 10 minuts, a Spaniard who keeps working without siesta, an Italian without weekend holidays, are all contradiction in terms, and too painful to see. But this is the reality in Europe today, as I verified with my own eyes. Japanization of Europe, too horrible.

16. shipbuilder said...

There are jobs for people with brains - in the financial industry. Money is all and everything that does not produce money is useless. Why bother with real innovation and technological progress when you can add a few bells and whistles to your product and up the profit margin? Why bother addressing societies issues? Long term thinking doesn't make money in the short term. Who cares about the next generation when I can spend my money now?

I'm with Paul on this one - I am sick of hearing about this 'new economic reality' that we must all accept. For who's benefit? If wages are staying static and new jobs are low-paid, then who is benefiting from economic growth? We are being robbed blind!