Daily Times

Unemployment, without a doubt, is a trauma. It is a tragedy, especially in those Third World countries where there are few jobs generated and even those are not being filled on merit. The problem becomes bigger when those few jobs are continuously grabbed on references and the information about the availability of those jobs is not being disseminated through a common national medium, which is an effective way for the common people to access information of their interest.

It is especially very disappointing for the youth that they are not informed when there is an opportunity and opportunities are unfairly distributed to those people who have power under the sophisticated word ‘reference’. In this way, the air of dissatisfaction is perpetrated and it frustrates the individual who has been striving to acquire a job. It is one of the ugliest features of this phenomenon that jobless youth with credible professional degrees keep striving, whereas opportunities are only available to those who have been ‘referred’.

Most of the poor or middle class segment lacks the reference element, while they face many economic and societal burdens. There is a general belief among such families that if their son/daughter has acquired a professional degree then he/she will become an officer but, unfortunately, when the bitter truth is faced and the harsh reality is revealed, the situation changes. The situation is that after getting tired of these struggles of finding a white-collar job, they switch to other prospects. Switching to another prospect or alternative is not easy. With that, the ambition and struggle is adversely affected. The youngsters who always studied with an ambition of enjoying the appropriate rank in the future after getting a degree start to become dissatisfied once they step into the job market.

What are those prospects? Those educated people might switch to other professions, which do not match their degrees’ quality and nature. For example, a masters degree holder might then choose to drive a taxi or start some blue-collar job to earn a living, with his dreams buried in his heart. The most devastating eventuality is committing suicide or adopting means to take revenge from society, which of course has a very damaging effect. In addition, brain drain takes place when the educated youth tend to move to other countries for acquiring opportunities and supporting their families.

Education is, undoubtedly, an important requisite for the development of any society but the application of that education can only truly be beneficial if is utilised in appropriate areas. Unemployment is not just an ongoing tragedy for any society, it has deeper implications. The problem of unemployment should be addressed with designing strategies that can actually curb it instead of just letting it grow, leaving a wave of dissatisfaction among the youth. Along with employing mechanisms for the growth of education, proper planning should go into generation of jobs.

Regular forecasts should be made about the percentage of the unemployed work force and how much more potential educated youth will come into the job market in the coming years. A systematic approach should be designed and implemented. Opportunities should be made apparent instead of being under a veil. The reference culture should be replaced with merit. Youth should be provided job opportunities on transparent grounds instead of letting the word ‘employment’ become a fantasy for them.

To utilise positively and efficiently the educated lot of society, it is essential to value them by providing them with a vision with realistic opportunities. Unemployment is not only to be discussed, it needs to be eradicated. Along with the growth of educated individuals, the opportunities should also be multiplied. The multiplication of job opportunities should not just encompass more reference-based jobs, it should have transparent procedures. White-collar jobs should not be restricted in the hands of a few people but permanent merit-based opportunities should be assigned.

Instead of just lamenting the bitter consequences of unemployment and statistically analysing its implications, the implementation of practical measures is needed. The system should be made transparent and government institutions must ensure that companies hire on merit. The recruitment procedure should be made apparent by making opportunities equal for all. The organisations on websites or in their manuals should not just declare tactfully the slogan that they employ on an equal basis, but rather, it should be exercised in the true context in reality.

Let society prosper by utilising the talent of educated personnel on merit-based grounds. It is not doubtful that opportunities are scarce but fair distribution would ensure that they go to the brighter, more deserving people through a clear merit-based procedure.

The writer is a faculty member at an educational institution, freelance columnist and blogger. She can be reached atbushrazia65@gmail.com