Marli Moreira
Reporter Agência Brasil

São Paulo – Over 46% of Brazil's unemployed are youths between the ages of 16 and 24, reports a study for the year of 2004 by the union-linked socio-economic statistics department (Dieese), the São Paulo state data analysis system (Seade), local authorities and the Ministry of Labor. The study was conducted in six metropolitan regions: Belo Horizonte, Porto Alegre, Recife, Salvador, São Paulo and Distrito Federal (Brasilia).

The study found a total of 3.5 million unemployed, of which 1.6 million were between the ages of 16 and 24 - 46.6%. On the other hand, out of a total of 14.7 million people with jobs, 3.1 million were between the ages of 16 and 24 - 20.8%.

"As you can see by the figures, the number of youths without jobs is around twice the number who have work. They are also the first to lose their jobs when downsizing takes place," says Patricia Lino Costa, an economist at Dieese.

The data also shows that youths from low-income families are less skilled and less prepared than youths from upper-class families. The latter go to better schools and can study a language, for example, so they tend to get the jobs, says Costa.

Translator: Allen Bennett