Recently, English media outlets have raised the alarm about youth unemployment in England. In a May article The Times stated, “The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the jobless rate for workers aged 16-24 rose to 16.2 per cent – the highest since January 2015 – in the first quarter of the year.”1 In the same article it is noted that the trend in unemployment overall is on the increase in England. An editorial in the UK Express laments that Britain’s socialist economic policies have initiated the problem and exacerbated it. It claims that the problem is the product of “…typical socialist politicians with little experience of creating jobs who think the private sector is just there to be looted to subsidise their own pet projects and suck-up to their union patrons.”2
It’s not been a major theme in the media, but the same pattern of rising youth unemployment is part of the current economic status in the US. According to a New America report based upon data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics “…nearly one in five young workers is unemployed” and the “rate of joblessness among individuals aged 16-24 is at its highest level on record.”3 The report continues that “youth unemployment is not a temporary or cyclical issue, but a longstanding structural crisis that has been normalized in the U.S. labor market.” And yet, many businesses including “critical industries” cannot find the workers they need.4
We here at I Vote My Vote feel the need to remind US voters that socialist welfare schemes have been a major driver of youth unemployment and unemployment overall. In a report entitled “Paying Americans Not to Work” economists Casey Mulligan (University of Chicago Economics Professor) and EJ Antoni (Research Fellow for Regional Economics) use business and labor statistics to point out that welfare policies have directly contributed to these problems. They state, “A family of four can receive over $100,000 annualized equivalent in cash and benefits in three states, and over $80,000 in 14 states, with no one working.”5
History is littered with examples of economic disaster by countries who have installed the authoritarian policies of socialism/communism. The truth is that “socialism has failed in every country in which it has been tried, from the Soviet Union beginning a century ago to three modern countries that tried but ultimately rejected socialism—Israel, India, and the United Kingdom.”6
If we learn this lesson ourselves here in the US maybe someone should let England know…
- Khan, M. & Kendix, M. (2026). UK youth unemployment rate hits 11-year high. The Times. Retrieved from Read more
- Newark, T. (2026). Reeves and Rayner’s jobs farce gives you yet another reason to vote Labour out. The Express. Read more
- Wilson, M. (2026). A Normalized Crisis: Youth/Young Adult Joblessness Data Brief 2026. Great Cities Institute. The University of Chicago. Read more
- Melhorn, S. & Hoover, M. (2026). Understanding America’s Labor Shortage: The Most Impacted Industries. US Chamber of Commerce. Read more
- Mulligan, C. & Antoni, EJ. (2026). Paying Americans Not to Work. Committee to Unleash Prosperity. Read more
- Edwards, L. (2019). Three Nations That Tried Socialism and Rejected It. The Heritage Foundation. Read more
