Rafah Crossing 'never been closed for one day' from Egypt: PM    Egypt will keep pushing for Gaza peace, aid: PM    Remittances from Egyptians abroad surge 70% YoY in July–May: CBE    Sudan's ambassador to Egypt holds reconstruction talks on with Arab League    Egypt's current account gap narrows, but overall BoP records deficit    Al-Sisi urges accelerated oil, gas discoveries, lower import bill    SCZONE signs $52.6m textile industry deals during China investment tour    Egypt hosts international neurosurgery conference to drive medical innovation    Egypt's EDA discusses Johnson & Johnson's plans to expand investment in local pharmaceutical sector    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi calls for boosting oil & gas investment to ease import burden    EGX to close Thursday for July 23 Revolution holiday    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Famine kills more Gaza children as Israel tightens siege amid global outrage    Kuwait's Crown Prince, Egyptian minister discuss strengthening cooperation    Egyptian Drug Authority discusses plans for joint pharmaceutical plant in Zambia    Egypt's FM seeks deeper economic, security ties on five-nation West Africa tour    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Giza Pyramids' interior lighting updated with new LED system    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



In Egypt, It helps to have the ‘right' parents
Published in Daily News Egypt on 16 - 03 - 2013


By Farah Halime, Rebel Economy
Circumstances beyond our control, including our parents' job titles, have become more important in deciding the fate of young Egyptians in the job market, World Bank data shows.
The type of job a young person ends up with is heavily influenced by the occupations of their parents, underscoring the inequality of opportunity in the Egyptian labour market, according to a World Bank report published in late 2012.
The study shows that in the last decade, the labour market fates of young people in Egypt have become more bound up in their family origins as opportunities have become more limited.
The bottom line: it pays to have the “right" parent. Yes, this might be true for many other countries but it is especially important for Egypt, where youth unemployment is a tinderbox of unrest and instability.
Among Egypt's young labour market aspirants, more than one in two stay in the same occupations as their parents, the report shows.
Lire Ersado, a senior economist at the World Bank, who was in Cairo this week to share his findings, said the predictive power a father's occupation has on a son's or daughter's occupation has increased in the last ten years:
This means when you're conceived your fate has already been decided and so being disadvantaged early on can affect your entire life. For example, there is a strong chance that if your father was a farmer, you will also be a farmer.
It's decided in the womb.
In 2006, 44% of young men and 75% of young women born to parents with white-collar occupations remained in the same occupational status. The data shows that young people with fathers in white-collar occupations are four times more likely to obtain a white-collar job as those with fathers in agricultural or elementary occupations.
Meanwhile, 42% of young men and 54% of young women with parents in agricultural or elementary occupations remained in the same occupational status. Young women in particular had a much greater decline in their social mobility [i.e., their job prospects] when born to fathers in agricultural or elementary occupations, widening their already sizable disadvantage.
It is not just job prospects that appear to be dampened or helped by your father's job, but your perception of personal success.
A son or a daughter of parents in agricultural or elementary occupations has less reason in 2006 than in 1998 to believe he or she can aspire to a better job than her or his father, the data shows.
The son of a father with a blue-collar and agricultural or elementary occupations had, respectively, only a 20% and 15% chance of obtaining a white-collar job in 1998. By 2006, that had shrunk to 18% and 11%.
This has also impacted the search for the right job.
While it takes as long as 12 years for a less advantaged person to find an ideal, well-paid job, it takes just 8 years for someone considered more advantaged.
While this data is a couple of years old and seems to ignore the secondary, informal labour market, it is an important indicator that suggests ambitious and innovative young Egyptians are more likely to give up on getting a decent job if they are born into a poorer family because opportunities are limited to them.
What is Mr Ersado's antidote?
He says that economists have varied beliefs about inequality and the harm and hindrance it can have on society. Some believe inequality offers a good incentive to work hard; many others say inequality leads to investment being funnelled to specific projects and ignores the neediest.
But Mr Ersado says, “I have not seen anyone argue against equal opportunities for children. This unites us".
Addressing the job market problem early on (at the child level) is far more effective than tackling it at the job market level, he says, and is a good entry point for dialogue with the government.
Equality is not just about better job opportunities for men and women but makes economic sense. It means efficiency and productivity. Fundamentally, quality in the job market is also a critical factor for true political rights.
If you had a rewarding, successful job and could feed your family, would you feel like protesting?


Clic here to read the story from its source.