What accounts for youth unemployability?

We compare the proportion of young people not in education or employment (NEETs) across euro-zone countries. What accounts for the high proportion of “unemployables” in some countries (France, Spain, Italy among the large OECD countries)? We examine the roles played by: An overall shortfall of jobs, which makes it difficult for young people to enter the labour market; The quality of the education system; Labour costs; The degree of labour market regulation. We find that a high proportion of young NEETs is associated with: The overall labour market situation ; The quality of the education system; The evolution of real wages relative to productivity.