Employment and Unemployment amongst Educated Youth in Bangladesh: An Exploratory Analysis

Abstract

This is an exploratory exercise that attempts to identify the potential for carrying out online socio-economic surveys in Bangladesh, taking the question of “educated unemployment” as a test case. The topic is of great interest not just in Bangladesh but also throughout South Asia and beyond, where the issue is of particular concern in the context of rapid growth and rising aspirations amongst young people. Most studies depend either on own data generation or periodic national level surveys like the Labour Force Surveys (LFS). The former consists of small datasets, while the latter have a limited number of relevant variables available for analysis. Thus, easier access to larger datasets with better coverage of variables would be a highly welcome additional resource for researchers and policymakers. It was, in fact, possible to rapidly generate a large volume of data using an online platform (Facebook) for this exercise. The data validation approach used here is to compare findings with those reported in the wider literature. In general, the results obtained from the online survey appear both reasonable and defensible. The estimates of educated unemployment are consistent with other available estimates. The relationship of unemployment to education, gender and location is similar to those reported in the literature. The effect of “control” variables like family size, age and family income was as expected. In particular, family income (reflecting family influence) emerged as a powerful predictor. The study was also able to throw light on two other aspects of the labour market, including duration of unemployment and salary levels.

Academic Curriculum and Labor Market Mismatch: A Study on University Graduates in Bangladesh

“…But, at the same time, huge number of university graduates remain in the unemployment pool for a long time. More than one-third of the youth are unemployed (Murshid, Mahmood & Shashi, 2019). In the face of fourth industrial revolution, industries need to constantly adjust their business model and production process.…”

Positive Youth Development: An Analysis of the Government’s Model in Bangladesh

“…This huge amount of young population demonstrates an immense potentiality / opportunity as well as 'threat' for Bangladesh if proper development and opportunities are not given to them. Thus, "there is a growing concern in the country that if large numbers of educated, young people are bypassed by the development process and fail to obtain employment, this might lead to widespread social unrest and encourage extremism" (Murshid et al, 2019). It is pertinent to mention that almost half of the young are unemployed and 23% are illiterate (Muzahid, 2015).…”

“…It is pertinent to mention that almost half of the young are unemployed and 23% are illiterate (Muzahid, 2015). In addition, educated unemployment is growing / increasing massively in Bangladesh (Murshid et al, 2019). As far as youth development index is concerned, Bangladesh performed the lowest among the commonwealth countries.…”

The desired employability skills and work readiness of graduates: Evidence from the perspective of established and well-known employers of an emerging economy

“…The Bangladesh Labor Force Survey 2016-17 reported the rate of unemployment amongst graduates as 11.2%, which is much higher than the national unemployment rate of 4.2% (Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, 2018). Surprisingly, Murshid et al (2019) reported the graduate unemployment rate as 33.2% in Bangladesh. On the contrary, industries in Bangladesh run with 10-15% vacant positions every year owing to the lack of qualified hires (Nusrat and Sultana, 2019).…”