A profile of young NEETs: Unpacking the heterogeneous nature of young people not in employment, education or training in South Africa

Abstract

Globally, the large numbers of young people who are not in any kind of education, employment or training (NEET) are a cause of great concern. These youth are often seen as disengaged from the labour market and from society more broadly. With more than 5.5 million youth between the ages of 15 to 29 who are NEET, South Africa shares this concern but has remained without a clear understanding of the characteristics of these young people. Drawing on second quarter 2018 Quarterly Labour Force Survey and 2017 General Household Survey data, this working paper of the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit investigates the heterogeneity of the group of NEET youth in the country and explores what microeconomic factors are associated with being NEET among black youth.