ILO 2026 Report: Global Youth Unemployment Hits 12.4% as AI Threatens Entry-Level Jobs

The International Labour Organization (ILO) released its Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026 report on August 11, 2026, delivering a sobering assessment: after a brief post-pandemic recovery, the global youth unemployment rate is rising again. The report estimates that 67 million young people aged 15–24 were unemployed in 2025 , and warns that artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape the entry-level job market — particularly in high-income countries .

Youth unemployment rises to 12.4% in 2025

The global youth unemployment rate reached 12.4% in 2025, up from 12.3% the previous year . This increase reverses the downward trend that had brought youth unemployment to a two-decade low in 2023 . To put that in context, young people are now 2.5 times more likely to be unemployed than the general workforce, which remained stable at 4.9% in 2025 .

The ILO attributes the rise to a combination of weaker economic growth, geopolitical tensions, and sluggish job creation .

260 million young people are now NEET

Perhaps more alarming than the unemployment rate itself is the number of young people disconnected from both work and education. The ILO reports that approximately 260 million young people globally are classified as NEET — not in employment, education, or training . That represents about one in five young people worldwide .

The situation is most acute in low-income countries, where the NEET rate stands at a daunting 27.9% — nearly three in ten young people . The ILO described youth job prospects in the world's poorest economies as "daunting" .

Young women are disproportionately affected, though the report notes significant regional variation .

Uneven regional impacts

Not all regions are equally affected. High-income countries saw some of the steepest increases in youth unemployment, a trend the ILO says is linked to early AI-driven changes in the job market . Meanwhile, Northern Africa and the Arab States continue to have the highest youth unemployment rates globally — roughly 2.2 and 1.7 times the global average, respectively, based on earlier ILO data .

The recovery from the pandemic has been deeply uneven across regions .

The emerging AI risk to entry-level jobs

A central new theme of the 2026 report is the growing threat that artificial intelligence poses to young job seekers . The ILO warns that AI is beginning to reshape the job market for young workers by automating routine administrative and clerical tasks that have traditionally served as stepping stones into the workforce .

Entry-level positions in fields such as data entry, customer service, and basic administration are most vulnerable to displacement . The report flags that AI could add to mounting labour market pressures for youth, making it harder to secure that crucial first job . A separate ILO report from January 2026 similarly warned that AI and trade policy uncertainty risk further undermining job prospects for young people .

At the same time, AI is creating demand for specialized tech skills — but many youth in lower-income countries lack access to the training needed to fill those roles . This risks widening the gap between developed and developing economies.

What this means for young workers and policymakers

The 2026 ILO report paints a picture of a job market that is becoming harder to enter for young people, even as headline unemployment figures for adults remain stable. The combination of rising NEET rates, regional inequality, and the early effects of AI automation suggests that the pandemic-era recovery may have been short-lived for youth.

For policymakers, the report underscores the need for targeted investments in education and training, particularly in low-income countries, and for proactive strategies to help young workers transition into the AI-augmented jobs of the future .