Education to Employment: What Can Government Do About the Skills Gap?

In Greece and South Africa, more than half of young adults are out of work. In much of the Middle East, the figure is 25 percent; in the United States, it’s about one in six. Yet at the same time, businesses complain that they can’t find enough workers: 40 percent of employers surveyed by McKinsey as part of our recent report on youth unemployment said skill shortages were a primary reason for vacancies in entry-level jobs.