In terms of the fight against precariousness, 18-25 year olds must stop being treated like big children with rights inferior to those enjoyed by older age groups. This is, in essence, the message of the Terra Nova association in a note made public on Thursday, January 20, and signed by Tom Chevalier, research fellow at the CNRS. The think tank pleads for ” young adults “ access a real “social citizenship” in particular by becoming eligible for the active solidarity income (RSA).
For years, this category of the population, which is starting – or about to start – in working life, has been experiencing a more difficult fate than the average. The share of people aged 18 to 24 below the poverty line was 23% in 2018, ten points more than the population as a whole. And the situation did not improve during the recession caused by the Covid-19 epidemic, because it caused the destruction of tens of thousands of jobs, in temporary or short-term jobs, which were often occupied by young people.
The executive defends its “contract of engagement”
Consequently, Terra Nova considers that it is necessary to provide a “income support” when opening “the RSA to (…) under 25 “. This measure would be “decisive” on a social level, since it would make it possible to deploy “a safety net for the most disadvantaged young people”. It would also be very beneficial “from a political point of view” : the State would thus testify to its ” confidence (…) in [la] youth, which, in turn, would also promote the confidence of young people in institutions”. The cost to public finances would not be insignificant: around 4.6 billion to 5 billion euros, according to assessments made in 2016 by the administration.
The power in place, which is against such an extension of the RSA, has defended another solution: the ” employment contract “. Announced at the beginning of November 2021 by Emmanuel Macron, the system is aimed at people under 26, who are neither in activity, nor in training, nor registered in an educational establishment – the NEETs in English (neither in employment nor in education or training). These audiences will be offered a “intensive support” from six to twelve months (sometimes eighteen, in certain exceptional cases), the aim being to support ” at least ” 400,000 people in 2022. Those who have no or few resources will receive an allowance of up to 500 euros per month.
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