Why young people in Britain aren’t moving job

OLDER PEOPLE tend to regard 20-somethings as avocado-toast munching types who flit from job to job. The reality is very different. Job mobility among the young has declined over the past decade.

Even though unemployment is hitting multi-decade lows and the job market continues to tighten—labour-market data published this week showed strong growth and the employment rate at a record high—younger workers remain more wedded to their current jobs than they were before the recession (see chart). There is a similar trend in other rich countries, but it is particularly pronounced in Britain. According to Neil Carberry, chief executive of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, a recruiters’ trade body, the commonest complaint among his members is of a shortage of candidates.