GLOBDEV #5: Netherlands: A Wonderland in the Eurozone

Although the Netherlands have been affected by the current crisis in Europe, they still manage to keep low inflation and unemployment rates.

So how can the Netherlands maintain unemployment rate low?

Even when their country provide unemployment benefits, which can decrease the incentive of the unemployed to find jobs, their unemployment rates have been kept low. This could be a product of their effective system of providing jobs to unemployed that suit their skills, knowledge, and experience. According to an article in BBC (Reed, 2011), young Dutch people are offered jobs according to their skills, and are deprived of their unemployment benefits if they don't take the offered jobs after three offers.

Other parts of the Europe provide very limited unemployment benefits yet could not keep their unemployment rates low. The Dutch government however, offers generous unemployment benefits but compels the unemployed to take jobs that are available. This is what makes them different from other European countries.

So can we apply the same in the Philippines? Well, I doubt if we even have the resources to provide unemployment benefits when we can't even afford to provide jobs in the first place. I think we should make low-skilled jobs or jobs which less people target more appealing to the unemployed. One factor that contributes to our high unemployment is that most graduates force themselves into saturated sectors of the labor force.

If we give enough support for farmers, more people will find incentives in farming and will no longer compete for jobs that require a lot of investment in education. If we hire more teachers and increase their benefits, more brilliant people can opt to teach and the average ratio of teachers to pupils may increase, therefore improving quality of education at the same time. If we limit mining or other industries that provide temporary jobs and put more attention to emerging markets like coconut water, which PNoy recently brought home after being introduced by New Yorkers, more coconut growers can find a more permanent living.

Reference:

Reed, J. (2011, October 21). Youth jobs: Is unemployment answer in the Netherlands? Retrieved March 27 , 2012, from BBC Radio Newsbeat: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/15387800