Zuzana Potužáková

Technical University of Liberec

Liberec, Czechia

E-mail: zuzana.penickova@tul.cz 

ORCID 0000-0003-1007-6730

The EPL index, youth unemployment and emigration within the EU

Diana Bílková

University of Economics

Prague, Czechia

E-mail: diana.bilkova@vse.cz 

ORCID 0000-0001-9871-0882

Abstract. This article focuses on analysing the link between the rigidity of labour markets, the youth unemployment rate and the number of emigrants in the 19-30 age group within the EU in the years 2009-2020. The calculations show a very strong link (0.91-0.95) between the EPL index and the youth unemployment rate during the observed period. The nexus between youth unemployment and youth migration is confirmed as well. The linear dependence fluctuated between 0.61 and 0.65 in the same period. Furthermore, the correlation between total unemployment and total emigration reached up to 0.85 in the post-crisis period. The labour market rigidity and the EPL strictness can have, therefore, several effects; in addition to youth unemployment and youth emigration, total emigration is stimulated as well.

Received: November, 2021

1st Revision: July, 2022

Accepted: September, 2022

DOI: 10.14254/2071-789X.2022/15-3/16

JEL Classification: J11, J61

Keywords: employment protection (EPL), EU Member States, internationalization, migration, youth unemployment rate