Demonstrators carry signs as they stage a protest demanding government action to create jobs.
Enduring high unemployment among young people in the United States is adding up to $25 billion a year in uncollected taxes and higher safety net costs, a new report shows.
In the study, Young Invincibles, a youth advocacy group, examined the real and hidden costs of young adult unemployment on Americaâ„¢s taxpayers and its devastating impact on the economy.
Å“When you have an entire generation of young people that are out of work, itâ„¢s going to create tremendous costs for taxpayers both now and in the future.” said Rory Oâ„¢Sullivan, the policy and research director of the Young Invincibles.
Å“Now we have the economic evidence showing that everyone suffers through reduced economic output and lower tax revenues,” Oâ„¢Sullivan said.
According to the report, the cost of youth unemployment and lower workforce participation rates among young adults since the recession began in November 2007 is greater than $25 billion annually or $171 per taxpayer.
On average, a single 18- to -24-year-old without a job will cost the government over $4,100 a year in uncollected taxes and extra safety net benefits. That amount climbs to $9,900 annually among unemployed 25- to 34-year-olds.
If those costs were billed directly to taxpayers, each one would have to shell out an additional $53 a year.
The unemployment rate for Americans aged 18 to 34 years old has been over 10 percent for nearly six years. Those between16 to 24 suffer from 15 percent unemployment.
That does not include young people who are not working because they are in school, who are no longer looking for work or who were too discouraged to begin a job search.
AHT/ARA
Source: Press TV