commissionedby

Future Ready:

Reimagining Meaningful Workfor Young People
July 2024

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Acknowledgements
Deloitte Australia acknowledges and thanks the World YMCA for commissioning the report with support from ServiceNow and
the Y Australia. In particular, we would like to thank the following for their contribution and strategic input:
World YMCA
YMCA is active in 12,000 communities and 120 countries, employing some 90,000 staff and mobilizing some 920,000
volunteers. It reaches over 60 million people a year. Working collectively under its shared YMCA Vision 2030, it impacts lives
through programs and advocacy in four priority areas: Community Wellbeing, Meaningful Work, Sustainable Planet, and Just
World. Established in 1844, the YMCA is 180 years old in 2024.
Y Australia
Part of the global YMCA Movement, the Y Australia offers a wide range of programs and services over 680 localities around
Australia that support children and young people across their life cycle, from early learning programs to meaningful career
pathways, through to recreation and other supports for older Australians.

Carlos Sanvee

Jan Owen AM

Tal Karp

Secretary General, World YMCA

Project Sponsor

Project Sponsor

Rehana Merali MerchantMaria Cristina Saldarriaga

Lauren Pollock

Pillar Lead, Meaningful Work

Global Program Support Coordinator

National Manager, Youth Ecosystem
and Special Projects

Nicole Scoble-Williams

Cameron Pitt

David Rumbens

Global Future of Work Lead

Australian Modern Work Lead Partner

Deloitte Access Economics Partner

Thank you to the Deloitte Human Capital and Access Economics teams for their contributions:
Jacqueline Spence

Sophie Jayatillake

David Crowe

Amelia O’Dell

Michelle Shi

Kirsty Miller

Jacob Meacham

Jasper Roberts

Sophia Bars

Thank you to the over 10,000 young people, from 127 countries, that participated in the Meaningful Work Survey, and the60+ young people who were directly consulted as part of focus groups.
Thank you to the 90+ Youth Champions and the 85+ National Government Secretaries who drove the success of the Meaningful
Work Survey and assisted in prioritising a diverse voice of young people from across the world.
Thank you to the members of the Steering Committee for YMCA's Global Meaningful Work Project; the YMCA's Community of
Impact on Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship and World YMCA's Communications team for their invaluable input, advice
and support.
Thank you to the 20+ Global Deloitte Partners for offering their expertise and eminence to the Meaningful Work findings andconclusions.

Supported By:

Deloitte
Access Economics
2

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

World YMCA and Vision 2030
YMCA is the oldest and one of the largest youth organisationsin the world. Established in 1844, it has grown to reach over
65 million people a year across 120 countries, forming a global Movement.
YMCA’s vision is a world where every person lives in harmony with self,with society and with creation. Its mission is to empower young people andcommunities worldwide to build a just, sustainable, equitable world.
To drive progress towards achieving its vision and mission, in 2022, YMCA
endorsed the Movement’s first ever shared strategy and plan, Vision 2030.
Vision 2030 comprises a collective vision statement, a mission statement,
and four key ‘Pillars of Impact’ and is closely aligned to the UN Sustainable
Development Goals, which must also be achieved by 2030.

Vision 2030 aims to:
Inspire young people to be and to lead the change they want to see.
Unite the YMCA Movement to maximise collective impact.
Help the YMCA Movement reach its goal of being the world’s partnerof choice as a youth empowerment organisation.
Help the YMCA Movement reach and collaborate with partners, funders,organisations, and individuals.
The four key ‘Pillars of Impact’ defined in Vision 2030 are Community
Wellbeing, Meaningful Work, Sustainable Planet, and Just World.
Further information on each of the Pillars can be found here.

02

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

The Meaningful Work pillar
The Meaningful Work pillar of YMCA Vision 2030 pledges to create, expand and advocate
for meaningful, just and equitable education, training, employment and entrepreneurship
opportunities in the transition to a new economic structure. The Meaningful Work pillar has
three Strategic Goals, focused on the YMCA, communities, and the world.
This report focuses specifically on Strategic Goal 3 of the Meaningful Work pillar:

Our World: The YMCA amplifies the voices of young people
and communities and advocates policies to ensure decent,flexible, meaningful and equitable access to employment,
entrepreneurship and training opportunities.
The Y Australia (formerly YMCA Australia) was tasked with providing global leadership to
the YMCA-wide work done on Meaningful Work. To accelerate progress, The Y Australia
embarked on a new collaboration with global professional services firm, Deloitte Australia.
The collaboration effectively optimised both YMCA and Deloitte’s expertise, reach andunique understanding of young people and the changing nature of work.

03

Contents

04

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Introduction

05

Background07

Executive summary

10

Context

13

The Framework

18

What could the framework achieve?

28

Key findings and next steps

31

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Introduction

05

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Foreword

Established in 1844, the YMCA Movement
is dedicated to empowering young people
and their communities worldwide to build
a just, sustainable, equitable and inclusive
world, where every person can thrive inbody, mind and spirit.
In 2022, we launched YMCA Vision 2030,
the first global strategy in the history of ourMovement. ‘Meaningful Work’ is one of four
strategic pillars of Vision 2030: by 2030, ourMovement aims to empower young people
and their communities everywhere toensure they are ready for the challenges ofwork in the future.
Delivered as part of the Meaningful
Work pillar, Future Ready: Reimagining
Meaningful Work for Young People, goesbeyond discussing the problems young
people and society are facing, andpresents a new approach to Meaningful
Work to ensure that young people are
empowered and prepared for modern
work. We wanted to deliver to young
people something that is truly additiveand practical. This report builds upon thework of, Crisis of Opportunity: Young People
Navigating the New Work Order, whichsheds light on the formidable challenges
young individuals face in accessing andembracing Meaningful Work in our
rapidly evolving world.

06

We have designed a new definition for
Meaningful Work for young people, andtwelve Meaningful Work Standards.
This work, meticulously crafted throughcollaboration and compassion – withand for young people - is more than justa set of words on paper. It is a common
language, a shared vision that we invite
stakeholders across the work ecosystem
to use. From employers to educators, frompolicymakers to community organisations,from not-for-profits to personalconnections – we call upon each andevery one of you to join us in this sharedendeavour and responsibility. Youngpeople need Meaningful Work now morethan ever, but we cannot do this alone.
At its core, this report serves as a clarion
call for action, reminding us that the futureof Meaningful Work hinges on collective
efforts and unwavering dedication
to change.
Within this vast work ecosystem, YMCA
stands poised as a catalyst for change.
With our rich history spanning nearly two
centuries, we have earned the trust andrespect of communities worldwide, serving
as a beacon of hope and empowerment
for young people everywhere. Our rolein this transformative journey is clear: tolead by example, to amplify the voices ofyoung individuals, and to champion a newera of Meaningful Work across the work
ecosystem, that uplifts every individual andleaves no one behind.

As we turn the pages of this report, let
us be inspired by the possibilities that lie
ahead. Let us seize this moment to ignitechange, inspire collaboration, and build aworld where every young individual canrealise their full potential and contributemeaningfully to society.
Together, let us embark on this journey
towards a future where Meaningful Workis not just a dream, but a reality for all
young people.

Carlos Sanvee
World YMCA Secretary GeneralFuture Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Background07

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Document purpose
The report Future Ready: Reimagining
Meaningful Work for Young People, is a joint
publication between the World YMCA,
Y Australia, Deloitte Australia, and 10,000
young people. It provides a common
framework and language for defining
Meaningful Work for young people anddelivers findings and key recommendations
that aim to drive positive and tangible
change globally.
The objectives of this report are toprovide contextual elements, a concise
framework, practical examples, strategic
recommendations, and next steps forstakeholders addressing Meaningful Workin the labour ecosystem.

It is one of several reports delivered as partof YMCA’s Vision 2030 and is the successor
report to, Crisis of Opportunity: Young
People Navigating the New Work Order, which
explores the hopes, fears and challenges
that young people are facing in accessing
and engaging in Meaningful Work today.

Intended audiences andhow to use this document
To achieve Meaningful Work foryoung people, collaboration andinvestment across the ecosystem iscrucial. This document is intended
for various audiences.

A young person's "work ecosystem"encompasses the network of actors—
including governments, businesses,organizations, NGOs, families, andcommunities—that influence theiropportunities, support, and experiencesin accessing and engaging withmeaningful work.
We have taken steps to make the report
globally accessible, reporting on insightsthat are broadly consistent acrossboth the Global North and South, aswell as economies of different levels of
maturity. We provide an overview of how
different audiences can interpret andapply the report.

Table 1.1: Intended audience and use of report
Intended Audience

How they can use the report

Young People

Help young people articulate what they want and need from their education providers,
government, employers and community organisations, while also providing practical decisionmaking support.

Government and Policy Makers

Inform policy decisions on Meaningful Work at local and national levels, identify areas forgovernment support, and collaborate with the World YMCA and partners to advocate, activate
and implement recommendations and initiatives.

Major NGOs, International
Organisations, Community
Organisations and Not-ForProfits

Leverage the insights and concepts from the report to inform further research, policies andinitiatives.

Education Providers

Leverage the insights and concepts from the report to inform updates to educational frameworks
and curricula.

Employers

Leverage the insights and concepts from the report to support workplace design and practices.

Industry Bodies

Collaborate with World YMCA and partners to leverage report insights and drive alignment
with industry requirements and regulations, supporting the activation and implementation ofrecommendations.

Source: Deloitte and YMCA

08

Deliver initiatives that align with the definition, recommendations and quick wins proposed in thereport through knowledge, networks, tools, funding.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Approach to this report
The report was developed through an eight-month collaboration between World YMCA, Y Australia, and Deloitte Australia.
It has been informed by a comprehensive and robust deep listening process that has included:

The Youth Meaningful Work
Survey, a survey of 10,000
young people aged 18 – 35 years
old from over 120 countries
worldwide, delivered by theWorld YMCA in conjunction
with Deloitte and ServiceNow.
90+ Youth Champions (YMCA
staff and volunteers) wereenlisted from YMCAs topromote the survey and playeda critical role in driving survey
responses and reaching underrepresented groups.
Listening insights drawn fromthe Global Meaningful Workproject between World YMCA
and Deloitte.

Extensive desktop research intocurrent and future work andworkforce trends.
Current World YMCA Vision
2030 and Meaningful Workpillar documentation, including
reports, policies and programs.

Who do we mean by ‘young people’?
The definition of "young people" varies
among international organisations suchas ILO, OECD, WHO, and UN, based on
different socio-economic contexts andmandates.
For the World YMCA Global Meaningful
Work project and this report, ‘young
people’ refers to individuals aged 18 - 35.
This age range was chosen to allow for a
detailed examination and comparison of
the needs and preferences of individuals
within specific age groups. Segmenting
the range into narrower brackets, suchas 18 - 21, 22 - 25, 26 - 30, and 31 - 35,
has provided nuanced insights into how
preferences and priorities differ acrossdifferent life stages within the broader
young adult demographic.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Executive
summary

10

The world of work is rapidly changing.

Recent research, including the first part of this report series Crisis of Opportunity emphasises that young people’s personal and professional
lives are deeply entwined. Young people are facing three critical issues at work: unemployment, anxiety, and mental health issues.
The Youth Meaningful Work survey, which surveyed over 10,000 young people around the world, identified a number of key barriers
preventing young people from accessing and engaging in Meaningful Work. These key barriers included:

Access to theright education and skills

What can we do to support young people
as they face these challenges? The
first step is arriving at a universal
understanding of what Meaningful
Work is to young people, to create acommon language to foster improvedalignment, collaboration and collective
commitment and action across the work
ecosystem, to better support young
people.

Siloed and fractured support
systems that create accessto and prepare young people
for Meaningful WorkIn this report, we have developed aframework for Meaningful Work – with andfor young people - with this in mind. The
framework is a collective term that includes
both a definition for Meaningful Work foryoung people and the Meaningful Work
Standards. It concisely articulates what isrequired to unlock access and engagementin Meaningful Work for young people.

Distress caused by future
economic, environmental, andsocial factors that could limit
the potential of young people

The definition of Meaningful Work was
based heavily on the Youth Meaningful
Work Survey, other deep listening sessions
and existing research. The definition isdesigned to be globally relevant and locallyapplicable, recognising both common
challenges and unique local contexts, andis as follows:

Figure 1.1: The definition of Meaningful Work

Meaningful Work is work that is fair and fulfilling, and which positively influences
the growth and wellbeing of young people and their communities.
The Meaningful Work Standards
translate the abstract concepts of thedefinition into what work should look like by2030 and beyond.

11

The twelve Meaningful Work Standards
have been crafted for global relevance.
However, given the diverse needs andpreferences of various audiences, twodifferent approaches to applying thestandards are explored:

1. The 12 Standards (S12) model:
All Standards are treated as equal.
Interdependencies exist andprioritisation is required.
2. Three-tier Transformation (T3)model: The Standards are groupedand prioritised to reflect the orderof importance.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Figure 1.2: Meaningful Work Standards

The 12 Standards (S12) model

Sustainable

GrowthHealthy

Purposeful

Co-create

Rewarded

Connected

Balanced

EthicalThree-tier Transformation (T3) model

Inclusive

Level 3
Transformative: Prioritise
worker agency and proactive
dialogue

Productive

Level 2
Strengthening: Improve
job satisfaction going
beyond basic rights

Protective

Level 1
Foundational: Aligned to
the ILO Decent work
principles

Source: YMCA and Deloitte

This report identifies three key findings thatwill shape the redesign of work for young
people, improve their access to meaningfulemployment and prepare them for thechallenges of modern and future work:
1. There is a need for convening,organising, activating, and amplifying
a network of stakeholders who can
support young people into MeaningfulWork.
2. Young people need to be engaged indesigning employment and education
solutions as we transition into new
economies.
3. Meaningful Work standards need tobe established and widely adopted tosupport young people and drive global
advocacy.
But, what comes next to ensure that
effective programs and policies are
established to provide young people withmore Meaningful Work opportunities?

12

There are six proposed actions for thewhole ecosystem to engage with:• Influencing the government agenda• Engaging the employer• Testing standards across the ecosystem
to raise awareness and assess theirapplicability in diverse contexts• Designing accountability and progressmeasures, to ensure that action is being
taken and assess their effectiveness• Implementing pilot initiatives, to bringabout tangible change for young people,
while also gathering additional evidence
to support the definition and standards
and their continued evolution• Developing stakeholder specificimplementation strategies, to identify
exactly how employers, educators,
governments and non-governmentorganisations can help to provide
Meaningful Work for young people

Overall, it is clear that the future of
Meaningful Work for young people hinges
on collective action and commitment tochange. These findings serve as a clear
call to action, urging us to embark on atransformative journey toward redesigningwork with, and for, young people.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Context

13

The case for change
Young people spend much of their life working in some capacity, and care deeply about their purpose in work, with 44% of Gen Z and 40%of Millennials turning down employers that don’t align with their values.1
However, young people face considerable hurdles in finding Meaningful Work. Young people are dealing with critical issues like highunemployment rates, a growing skills gap between what employers require and what young people possess, and social and economic
barriers. Across our research and deep listening – including our survey of over 10,000 young people in the Crisis of Opportunity report– the top barriers to achieving future work goals included skills, country economic and social conditions, and not accessing the rightsupport (Chart 1.1).2

Chart 1.1: Barriers for young people achieving their future work goals (Top 5)
Skills, qualiﬁcations or experience

38%

Living in a country with poor economic
or social conditions

31%

Access to the right support

29%

Lack of time (e.g. because of study
or home duties)

24%

Lack of technology

21%
0%

10%

20%

30%

It is evident that the existing support
systems are not adequately addressing
the needs of young people, leaving
them underprepared, unaware andunable to access available resourcesand opportunities. Our survey further
emphasises this, revealing that nearly 3 in 5(58%) young people need additional support
with skill development opportunities, over
1 in 2 (54%) with information about workand education, and 2 in 5 (45%) withfinancial support for work and education.3

40%

Source: World YMCA and Deloitte, Youth Meaningful Work survey; n = 9,600.

Chart 1.2: Additional support areas young people need in the future (Top 5)
Skill development
opportunities

58%

Information about work/
education opportunities

54%

Financial support forwork/education

45%

Coaching mentoring
support36%

Support for when I'm facing
uncertain situations

31%
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Source: World YMCA and Deloitte, Youth Meaningful Work survey; n = 9,730.

1

Deloitte, Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey Report (2024)2

Deloitte and World YMCA, Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People (2024)

3

Ibid

14

The current ecosystem is not equipped todeal with these challenges and is lagging
behind the pace of change. Outdated
programs and approaches are fuelling youth
unemployment and dimming prospects
for the future. Consequently, young people
are experiencing uncertainty and foresee
negative developments across various
significant trends that they have little to no
power to influence or control. This situation
has led to a lack of hope and is exacerbating
mental health issues among young people.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Importantly, there are substantial benefits to acting now, in improving support for young people. These benefits are widespread at theindividual, organisational and societal levels.

At the individual level, Meaningful
Work opportunities help young people
develop essential skills and experience
while also progressing their careers,
leading to increased productivity, job
satisfaction, improved mental andphysical wellbeing,4 and long-term
professional success.5

At the organisational/community
level, previous research showed that
Meaningful Work could lead to a 33%
increase in productivity and enhanced
innovation within organisations, withyoung employees contributing fresh
perspectives, creativity, and a willingness
to challenge the status quo, ultimately
driving organisational growth.6

Why do we need to define‘Meaningful Work’?

Our listening and survey highlights thatthe ecosystem needs to move to involve
young people more actively in the designand decision-making processes that will
embed and elevate Meaningful Work.
By empowering young people to shape
their futures and contribute to society,this approach aligns with internationalframeworks such as the UN's Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), whichemphasise the significance of youth
engagement for sustainable development.

To support young people in accessing andpreparing for future work, it is crucial toestablish a consistent understanding andshared vision of Meaningful Work.
Many challenges have arisen from theabsence of a universally agreed language
and framework for Meaningful Work,
including disparate efforts and potentiallyoutdated approaches (see Box 1). While
the ILO’s concept of "decent work" in theirresearch offers a close approximation,
it is more focused on fundamental
human rights. In designing our definitionof Meaningful Work, we are looking toencompass the broader and aspirational
concepts that young people require anddesire in a contemporary definition andframework.

4

World Health Organisation, Mental Health at Work (2022)

5

Wrzesniewski, A., & Dutton, J. E, Crafting a job: Revisioning
employees as active crafters of their work (2001)

6

McKinsey & Company, Making work meaningful from the C-suite to
the frontline (mckinsey.com) (2021)

7

ILO, Global Employment Trends for Youth (2022)

15

At the societal level, having more young
people engaged in Meaningful Work
yields numerous benefits – including
reducing economy wide costs of youth
unemployment, both in terms of lost
productivity and social cohesion.7

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

How do other organisations define
Meaningful Work?

The Meaningful Work framework presented in this report incorporates elements from broader research, and deep listening
sessions with young people and the ecosystem around them, to further build upon the foundational work of organisations suchas ILO, WHO, WEF, in addressing the Meaningful Work Agenda, including but limited to:
Decent work (ILO): “Decent work” encompasses productive, fair, and secure employment that drives secondary outcomes suchas skill development, social integration, and freedom of expression.8 Decent work is widely accepted and adopted, including
by federal governments (e.g. The United Kingdom), international organisations (e.g. the UN through Goal 8 of the Sustainable
Development Goals which seeks to “promote sustained ,inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive
employment and decent work for all”), the corporate sector (e.g. Unilever and IKEA), civil society organisations (e.g. Oxfam)
and trade unions (e.g. International Trade Union Confederation).

Health and wellbeing (WHO): the WHO advocates for a strong health and wellbeing perspective, contending that Meaningful
Work is work that contributes positively to the mental and physical wellbeing of employees.9

Skill development and growth (WEF): The WEF’s stance on Meaningful Work encapsulates the importance of learning anddeveloping skills at work, and how young people are most motivated by such opportunities.10 Most recently, the WEF
incorporated Meaningful Work into its concept of ‘Workforce Flourishing’, which suggests that organisations should support
a flourishing workforce by prioritising developmental, relationship, economic and health assets, with developmental assets
including Meaningful Work, job autonomy and learning and growth.11

Alignment with personal goals and values: Deloitte's "Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey" has highlighted that young people
prioritise value alignment in their work choices.12 Nearly all Gen Zs and Millennials want purpose-driven work, and they are
not afraid to turn down work that doesn’t align with their values. This is consistent with Edelman’s Gen Z research finding that,on average, 71% of workers want their work to reflect their values, provide a sense of purpose and have social impact.13

8International Labour Organisation, Decent Work: Concept and Indicators (2000)

9

World Health Organisation, Mental Health at Work (2022)

10World Economic Forum, The Future of Jobs Report (2020)

11

World Economic Forum, Why Workforce Flourishing is Critical to Upskilling in the Future of Work 2023

12

Deloitte, Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey (2024)

13

Edelman, The Power of GenZ in the Workplace (2023)

16

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Establishing a shared definition for
Meaningful Work for and with young
people, will:• Drive strategic collaboration,
investments and effort across thework ecosystem.
• Assist advocacy efforts and evidencebased decision-making,• Empower and inspire young people tohave a voice and make informed choices,• Inform the implementation of policies
and programs that promote quality
education, employment, social inclusion,
and well-being,• Showcase the benefits of adopting
youth-centred approaches, and• Support more consistent measurementof impact.
Furthermore, young people’s involvement
enhances the legitimacy and effectivenessof designs and decisions. and aligns
with the recommendations set forth
by the OECD. The OECD advocates fora more collaborative, deliberate, andtransformational approach to create better
opportunities and outcomes for young
people worldwide.

A compelling example of stakeholders
working together to drive a morecoordinated and comprehensive effort isY Australia's Y Careers initiative. This casestudy showcases the strength of collective
action and highlights how collaboration
among various stakeholders can leadto innovative solutions and meaningful
outcomes for young people navigating thecomplex landscape of employment andcareer development.

Case study: Y Careers, Y Australia

Y Careers, a pioneering social enterprise initiative, is revolutionising the care sector by addressing youth unemployment and thecritical shortage of care workers across Australia. This initiative not only addresses a critical societal need but also provides young
individuals with Meaningful Work opportunities.
Supported by an AUD15.2 million grant from the Australian Government and various other partners, Y Careers aims tocreate 30,000 job placements in the care sector for up to 15,000 young Australians. Selected young workers will go through acomprehensive traineeship program and a holistic support model that will equip them with the necessary skills and support formeaningful employment in the care industry.
It provides individuals with a launchpad, offering wraparound support to young people across diverse geographic and cultural
backgrounds. To ensure inclusivity and diversity in its workforce development approach Y Careers will also prioritise engaging
marginalised youth and those facing barriers to employment.
The program aims to provide young people with a comprehensive "career portfolio" of transferrable skills over a 12-monthtraineeship, with the option of extending to a second year.
Participants receive a competitive hourly wage, fully funded qualification (Certificate III in Individual Support), and engage in
multiple work placements. The program provides dedicated career coaching, diverse work placements, innovative training
opportunities, and personalised job matching and placement services.
The initiative represents a collaborative, strategic response that extends beyond addressing youth unemployment and care
worker shortages, to safeguarding critical services essential for communities and the Australian economy.

17

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

The Framework

18

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

While the concept of Meaningful Workis widely acknowledged by leadingorganisations, its interpretation varies.
A more comprehensive and agreed-upondefinition for Meaningful Work is importantto unify disparate concepts and ensurea shared understanding across variousorganisations and contexts.

The framework
The framework states what Meaningful
Work should be for young people in the
future. The framework is a collective
term that includes both a definition for
Meaningful Work for young people in 2030
and the Meaningful Work Standards.
The definition serves as a guiding beacon,articulating the overarching aspirationand target state for Meaningful Work foryoung people in 2030. The Meaningful
Work Standards, in turn, offer a new
global benchmark for how work should bedesigned with, and for, young people toachieve that aspiration.

Six design principles were established to
guide the development of the framework,with and for young people. These principles
ensure that the framework is robust, that itmeets diverse needs, and that it focuses on
supporting young people in accessing andengaging in Meaningful Work and being
prepared for modern work. The designprinciples include:• Sustainable and responsive –Designed to withstand the test of timeby remaining reactive to unforeseensocietal, economic, and environmental
shifts.
• Shaped by young people – Reflects
the perspectives of the group it aims
to serve, dismantling assumptions andbiases.
• Unique to young people – Recognises
and incorporates the unique personal
and professional experiences that young
people are facing.

01
Defining Meaningful Work for young people
The definition of Meaningful Work for young people describes what
they want and need from work to make it meaningful, as voiced bythem. The definition emphasises work experiences that go beyond basic
employment and individual benefit, prioritising work that allows them tofollow their passions and make valuable contributions to society today,
tomorrow and beyond.
Importantly, the definition was developed with and for young people,
with the primary input for the definition being insights from the YouthMeaningful Work Survey, which featured responses from over 10,000
young people from over 120 countries, and 5,000 of those identifying
as being from underserved communities. Other trends from research(including deep listening activities) were also considered.
Overall, the definition is designed to be globally relevant and locallyapplicable, recognising both common challenges and unique local contexts.

19• Universally applicable – Designed
to transcend geographical and cultural
boundaries and be relevant to all young
people, including the last mile (anyunderserved young people that cannot
be reached).
• Backed by research – Grounded in athorough understanding of the subject
matter, achieved by broad and deep
research.
• Intentional about transformation –Includes a deliberate focus on fostering
impactful change, ensuring that ourefforts are purpose-driven and geared
towards transformative outcomes.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Figure 1.1: The definition of Meaningful Work

Meaningful Work is work that is fair and fulfilling, and which positively influences
the growth and wellbeing of young people and their communities.
‘Fair’‘Fulfilling’

Meaningful Work means fair treatment for
all individuals, fostering an environment
where everyone is recognised, respected,
trusted, and appropriately remunerated,aligning with the ILO’s focus on decent
work. According to the Youth Meaningful
Work survey, lack of fair pay and benefits
is the biggest driver of negative work
experiences for young people (29%). It isalso considered important by almost 1 in 2
young people (46%) for the future of work.14

For young people to feel fulfilled with
their work they often need more thanthe basic rights. Career advancement
opportunities, skill development andwork-life balance are all additional
aspects to a young person’s role that are
not necessarily guaranteed. According
to the Youth Meaningful Work survey,
approximately 3 in 4 people (74%) want
opportunities to build skills and experiencein their job, and 2 in 5 (37%) want flexible
working hours.14 This highlights that young
people's preferences for work are evolving
beyond just financial compensation andleave benefits.

Fair treatment also encompasses
inclusivity, ethical work practices, andactively combating bias, corruption, anddiscrimination. It provides opportunities
for individuals to contribute their uniqueperspectives without fear of judgment,
prejudice or reprimand.
“I’m open to any kind of work, just so longas it’s dignified” – Survey respondent(female), Victoria, Australia.

14Deloitte and World YMCA, Crisis of Opportunity:
Young People Navigating the New Work Order (2024)

20“Having fulfilment in my work is all I want” –Survey respondent (female), North
Macedonia.

‘Growth’Meaningful Work promotes personal andprofessional growth, fostering resilienceand adaptability through uncertain times.
It provides individuals with the support topivot when their needs and wants change,and opportunities present themselves suchas reskilling and upskilling to experiencesustainable growth.

Meaningful Work embraces innovationand experimentation. Young people areencouraged to explore new ideas, try
different things and contribute fresh
perspectives in the aim of driving positivechange in society. This aligns with thepreferences of young individuals who
highly value opportunities to build skills
and experience. According to the YouthMeaningful Work survey, 3 in 4 young
people (74%) view this as a significant
aspect they desire in their future work,
alongside 2 in 5 wanting a space to express
themselves (36%).14"Professional development pathways needmore attention in organisations or all
sizes - I have typically received ‘good/great’on the job training, but have rarely beenencouraged or have had the opportunity to
upskill through my employers. I've looked at
options personally, but the time and financial
aspects involved have meant that I've notfollowed through with enrolment" – Survey
respondent (male), United Kingdom

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People‘Wellbeing’‘Communities’

Creating meaningful work environments that prioritise physical,
mental, and emotional health improves individuals' quality of life,
increases productivity, and reduces healthcare costs. Valuing
wellbeing has benefits for both individuals and employees alike,with research stating that productivity can increase by 25% whenemployees’ wellbeing is supported at the workplace.15

Young people are increasingly valuing job satisfaction beyond
personal gain. They view work as an opportunity to contributemeaningfully to society, with the Youth Meaningful Work survey
revealing that 2 in 5 (42%) young people consider purposefulwork important for their future.16 Furthermore, Deloitte’s 2024
Gen Z and Millennial Survey found that 86% of Gen Zs and 89%
of Millennials reported that purposeful work is important to theirjob satisfaction and wellbeing.17 This trend reflects the growing
desire among young workers to participate actively in and shapesocial and community impact, as evidenced by the 2024 Edelman
Trust Barometer.18

Young people are particularly aware of how important wellbeing is.
Approximately 1 in 3 (31%) young people identified that they would
need support for their mental health or wellbeing in the future.
“I’ve been experiencing significant hopelessness about my career futurerecently.” – Survey respondent (female), USA.
“It’s challenging being a young person right now and more support for
caregivers and those in financial stress needs to be available.” –Survey respondent, USA.

Not all components need to be achieved for the definition to berealised or valuable. Definitions often serve as guiding principles oridealised concepts that set a standard to aspire to rather than rigid
criteria that must be met in every instance. Therefore, while striving
to meet all components of a definition is important, achieving
partial alignment with the intended meaning can still lead tomeaningful outcomes and progress towards the overarching goal.
Further guidance on how the definition can be utilised is includedin the next chapter.

02
Meaningful Work Standards
The Meaningful Work Standards translate the abstract concepts of thedefinition into practical guidance for how work needs to be designed by2030 and beyond.
The Standards act as a practical guide for stakeholders of the ecosystemand outline the necessary shifts society must make towards new global
work principles.
As they are shaped by young voices, customisable to local needs, andfocused on current and future requirements, the Standards provide a
flexible framework and provide new work concepts that will be importantin 2030 and beyond. Regular review and iteration will ensure their accuracy
and relevance.
Overall, the adoption of this global benchmark is crucial in addressing
current challenges and empowering young people to pursue their
aspirations, ensuring young people can develop the necessary skills,
experiences, and resilience required for the contemporary job market.

15

Forbes, The Undeniable Link Between Well-Being And Productivity (2023)

16

Deloitte and World YMCA, Crisis of Opportunity: Young People Navigating the New Work Order (2024)

17

Deloitte, Global Gen Z and Millennial Survey (2024)

18

Edelman, Trust Barometer (2024)

21

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Figure 1.3: The Meaningful Work Standards
The twelve Meaningful Work Standards are designed for people from 18 - 35 years of age, irrespective of location and sociodemographic situation, and include:

Healthy work: Work actively promotes and sustains physical, mental, and emotional health, safety, and wellbeing.
Inclusive work: Work supports and values diversity across all dimensions, allowing individuals to contribute theirunique perspectives and be their authentic selves.
Productive work: Work uses practices, processes and tools that generate outcomes and valuable contribution
towards goals.
Purposeful work: Work is designed to be clearly linked to delivering value to the community, ensuring that
individuals can make meaningful contributions to a greater cause or purpose and/or follow their passions, with theimpact of their efforts clearly visible.
Ethical work: Work promotes accountability, transparency, and trust, ensuring ethical standards are upheld and theright actions are taken by all.
Protected work: Work provides protection against unfair dismissal and discrimination, as well as access to social
security benefits and mechanisms for resolving workplace disputes.
Balanced work: Work is designed to support work-life balance and allows work to be performed in ways that respect
unique needs and work preferences.
Connected work: Work fosters active engagement and meaningful social dialogue within communities and thebroader ecosystem to drive positive social change.
Rewarded work: Work fairly recognises and remunerates value delivered, enabling individuals to support
themselves, their families, and communities.
Growth through work: Work provides the opportunity for continuous personal and professional development andexperimentation, ensuring preparedness now and into the future.
Co-create work: Work empowers active participation from individuals of all ages in the decisions that shape
the future direction of an organisation.
Sustainable work: Work positively contributes to social and environmental action andfosters a more sustainable world.
While comprehensive, the Standards are not exhaustive, and there
may be additional areas of focus that are important for
Meaningful Work that are not explicitly included in thisiteration of the Standards.

22

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Case study: Deloitte’s Workforce
Well-Being Imperative Model

According to the Deloitte Global Wellbeing Survey, while 90% of executives believe that their company positively impacts worker
well-being, skills development, career advancement, inclusion and belonging, and sense of purpose, only 60% of workers agree.19
There is clearly an evolving discord between lower level employees and executives in their expectation for flexible, balanced andhealthy work, with 59% of workers saying they would consider quitting their job for one that better supports their wellbeing.20
Deloitte Global Insights conducted a marketplace survey of 1,274 workers across a wide range of industries, regions, educationand income levels to uncover the root causes of ‘work detriments’.
The product of these findings was Deloitte’s ‘Wellbeing Imperative Model’ (WIM) that matches ‘work detriments’ with solutions toalign organisational performance with workforce satisfaction and health in a sustainable way.
Healthy: In line with the World Health Organisation’s assertion that employment is a “social determinant of health,” WIM shifts
from legacy thinking on offering perks and benefits to solve workplace health issues, to setting up organisational structureswith empathy and feelings of psychological safety to create an environment conducive to proactively maintaining their individual
wellbeing.
Balanced: Deloitte found that when work intrudes on non-working hours as a result of constantly connected technology, workers
report consistently negative mood. The WIM encourages organisations to find opportunities that consolidate their hybrid working
arrangements, designing work to allow organisations to leverage the strengths of employees when they are at work. The Modelalso establishes methods to embed flexible work options into an organisation to allow employees to feel able to make their own
decisions about how they work.
Inclusive: Deloitte’s Wellbeing survey analysis found that one of the largest work detriments is a lack of recognition for selfexpression and identity. Employees that are disrespected or feel as though they don’t fit in are less likely to take initiative andpositively contribute to the organisation. The WIM provides a framework for workplace inclusion and respect and createsphysically and emotionally safe working environment that celebrates the expression of self-identity.

19

Deloitte, Wellbeing at Work Survey (2024)

20

Ibid

23

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Case study: Y Australia
Green Economy

Economic restructuring and shifts in employment types are viewed as the most likely products of the green transition, affecting
young people the most because of their lack of workforce experience and critical skills. Oxford Economics and ARUP estimatethat the transition to net zero will create new industries worth $10.3 trillion and Deloitte estimated that 300 million ‘green collar’
workforce jobs will be created globally by 2050. To ensure that Australia is prepared with the workforce skills required to executeand sustain the green economy – and to ensure that young people are not left behind - the Y Australia commissioned a new
project to help solve both issues concurrently.21
Purposeful: The Y Australia’s Green Economy project aims to accelerate community environmental initiatives by making it easierfor young people to access occupations that are purposeful, segmented on “Tech, Trades and Trees”. In these opportunities,
young people are able to contribute to the green transition and efforts to slow and reverse climate change. Working in purposefuloccupations results in higher levels of workforce satisfaction and lower levels of distress, ensuring young people feel valued not
only in their organisation, but also the community.
Productive: Work integrated learning opportunities, involving a range of practical experiences designed to give valuable
exposure to training, people and resources in the green economy field were assigned achievable goals in terms of the volumeof participants, and offering organisations. The overall strategy seeks to place young people in a range of different sectors,
undertaking 5000 hours of work experience within 12 months. This outcome-driven approach affords a higher likelihood of
success and drives actors to collaborate in offering work-integrated learning opportunities by providing specific targets andstrategies to achieve them.
Ethical: The Green Economy project also encourages actions and programs that act not only in the public interest, but also in
the interest of individual young people, establishing a paradigm of supporting young people, particularly those from underserved
backgrounds to access Meaningful Work in critical and evolving industries. The initiative seeks to be seen as a pattern that can bematched in the future for other emerging economies and Meaningful Work opportunities to ensure ethical considerations in the
future of work.

21T he Y Australia and SVA Consulting, Supporting
young people into employment within the green
economy (2024)

24

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

The twelve Meaningful Work Standards
have been crafted for global relevanceand are intended to be applied individuallyand collectively, having regard to context,
purpose and value. To facilitate theirapplication to the diverse needs andpreferences of various audiences, twodifferent approaches to the Standards
are explored:
1. The 12 Standards (S12) model:
All Standards are treated as equal.
Interdependencies exist andprioritisation is required.
2. Three-tier Transformation (T3)model: The Standards are groupedand prioritised to reflect the orderof importance.

In the 12 Standards Model (S12) all
Standards are treated equally. However, toensure they are adopted appropriately
the model emphasises the need forbroad acceptance, understanding ofinterdependencies, and consideration of
local perspectives. This offers flexibility
and provides young people a strong
advocacy platform to public and privateorganisations.
Rather than prescribing a specificimplementation method, the model
facilitates conversations, raises awareness,and promotes acceptance of the twelve
new standards for Meaningful Work.
It helps young people navigate theircareers, make informed decisions, andassess employers for Meaningful Work
opportunities.

Figure 1.4: Meaningful Work Standards

The 12 Standards (S12) model

Sustainable

GrowthHealthy

Purposeful

Co-create

Rewarded

Source: YMCA and Deloitte

25

Connected

Balanced

EthicalThree-tier Transformation (T3) model

Inclusive

Level 3
Transformative: Prioritise
worker agency and proactive
dialogue

Productive

Level 2
Strengthening: Improve
job satisfaction going
beyond basic rights

Protective

Level 1
Foundational: Aligned to
the ILO Decent work
principles

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

The three-tier transformation model offers a more structured framework for effectively addressing the diverse rights, needs, andaspirations of young people within the modern workforce and workplace environment.
This model prioritises the removal of harmful practices and the provision of basic rights as foundational elements, followed by efforts toenhance overall work experience and enable young individuals to thrive. The three tiers are outlined below:

Tier 1:

Tier 2:Tier 3:

Foundational Standards

Strengthening Standards

Transformative Standards

Closely aligned with the principles of
ILO’s Decent Work, the Tier 1 Standards
focus on the basic rights and social
protections for young workers globally.
The Foundational Standards include
Healthy Work, Rewarded Work, Ethical
Work, Protected Work and Inclusive
Work. For example: South Africa’s
Youth Employment Services (YES) has
tackled these priority issues, partneringwith businesses to provide paid job
opportunities (see case study below).

The Tier 2 Standards focus on worker
experience factors that improve job
satisfaction and go beyond basic rights
e.g., career advancement opportunities,
and work-life balance. By moving from theFoundational Standards up to this secondtier, organisations and policy makers
create environments where young people
not only feel safe and respected but also
valued and empowered to grow.
The Strengthening Standards include
Growth through Work, Co-created Work,
Balanced Work and Productive Work, which
can be seen in the case studies above.

The Tier 3 Standards prioritise worker
agency and proactive dialogue andparticipation to promote a culture ofinclusivity and sustainability, contributing
to economic growth, social cohesion,and sustainable development.
The Transformative Standards include
Sustainable Work, Purposeful Workand Connected Work, which can beseen in the Y Australia Green Economy
case study above.

Through initiatives like the YES initiative,
young people are given the opportunity
to access decent work and fair pay
which are essential for their economic
empowerment and social inclusion.

26

In conclusion, the Three Tier model
presents a strategic and phased approachto addressing the needs of young people intoday's workforce across different national
contexts. This model is primarily intended
for utilisation by businesses, employers,
government agencies, and policy makers.
Successful implementation of thismodel hinges on the recognition of local
nuance and tailoring the model to local
perspectives, needs, and priorities. Local
prioritisation ensures its relevance andeffectiveness across diverse contexts.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Case study – South Africa

South Africa faces challenges regarding fair pay for young people and a youth unemployment rate at 45.5%, almost 30% higher
than the global average. Despite record levels of South Africans being enrolled in tertiary level qualifications, the increase in skills
has not been reflected in an increase in graduate employment, decreasing from 40.3% to 32.6% in 2022. In response, the South
African Government launched the Youth Employment Service (YES) in 2018 to find solutions outside of the education system,
partnering with the largest employers in the country to provide direct work experience opportunities to young people.
Sustainable: By complementing social support services offered as part of a broader Presidential Youth Employment Intervention,
the YES initiative helps young people transition from learning to earning. The initiative was set up to fund its own revenues, withthe government estimating that R6 billion in youth salaries had been injected into the economy and enabled participants to
support their families.
Growth: The YES initiative involved upskilling young people not through educational institutions but through employers, toincrease the likelihood of remaining with the employer after a work placement ended. The initiative was successful in practicallyplacing 40% of participants into permanent jobs and long-term occupations.
Rewarded: Approximately 61% of YES participants came from households that are reliant on social grants. A participant that wasplaced with Mercedes Benz was the sole earner for her family. Being part of the initiative enabled her to support her family, andprovided her with the cash needed to save up and start a broiler chicken business, thereby breaking the cycle of unemployment
for her family.
Protected: The YES initiative placed over 100,000 South Africans between the ages of 18 and 29 in full time or part time
occupations and provided them with a stable and protected income stream, which is critical in enhancing economic
empowerment and social inclusion.

19

Deloitte, Wellbeing at Work Survey (2024)

20

Ibid

27

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

What could
the framework
achieve?

28

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

The Meaningful Work framework is a vehicle for improving young people’s access to and experiences at work. If there was alignment
across what young people need at work, all parts of the ecosystem could work together to make work more meaningful.
The potential outcomes of a broad adoption of the framework are considered below from three different angles – young people,
employers, and government and non-government organisations. This analysis is informed by the deep listening conducted with young
people and their ecosystem, though different outcomes may also emerge as the framework is adopted more widely.

Young people
The Standards serve as a practicalframework for young people to navigate
their careers and pursue Meaningful Work.
By utilising these Standards, young people
can drive positive change in their lives,
communities, and society. If young people
adopt the S12 model, it could help themachieve a range of outcomes, including but
not limited to:Young people have a role in supporting
employers, governments, and stakeholders
to adopt and implement these standards
to drive change. This includes participating
in discussions, advocating for policies,
and actively working towards change ineducational institutions, workplaces, andcommunities.

Employers

Self-reflection: The clear and robust setof Standards can be used as a practical
tool to reflect on personal values, interests,
and career goals. They will help each young
person identify what constitutes Meaningful
Work for them.

Employers play a crucial role in creating
an engaging, safe, and valued work
environment for young people. Employers
should adopt the T3 model as a structured
framework to address the rights, needs,
and aspirations of young people in theworkforce.

Research and exploration: Assist young
people explore education and employment
opportunities that align with their identified
values and aspirations. Allow employers andeducation providers to consider how they
adopt and amplify the Standards in theirenvironments.

This model helps employers prioritise
their effort and investment for maximum
impact on Meaningful Work opportunities.
In practice, the Standards can be utilisedby employers to achieve various outcomes,
including but not limited to:

Advocacy and engagement: Promote
Meaningful Work Standards throughadvocating for policies and initiatives
with stakeholders that actively engage indiscussions and actions to drive change.
Skill development: Develop and refine
skills that are relevant to Meaningful Workand assist young people seek opportunities
for growth and learning aligned to theStandards.
Community impact: Engage with local
communities to understand their needs
and leverage the Standards as a tool for
addressing social, environmental, andeconomic challenges, delivering tangible
impact at the grassroots level.

29

Redesigned work: Use the Standards
as a blueprint to create Meaningful Workenvironments that align with the values
and aspirations of young individuals. Tailor
job roles, responsibilities, and workplaceenvironments to prioritise purpose, growth,and safety to ensure that work is inherently
meaningful, offers opportunities for
personal and professional development,
and fosters engagement, creativity, and wellbeing among employees.

Worker trust, motivation, andretention: Embed the Standards into
work, workforce, and workplace design
to enhance worker engagement andretention. This helps workers connect theircontribution through their work to a greater
purpose and make a positive impact in theircommunities, improving job satisfaction,
loyalty, productivity, and retention.
Recruitment and hiring: Enhance
recruitment and hiring by emphasising
the importance of Meaningful Work in job
descriptions and interviews to attract top
talent and differentiate the employer brand.
Performance management and
Rewards: Integrate Meaningful Work
Standards into performance management
systems by setting aligned goals, evaluatingbased on these Standards, and recognisingand rewarding positive impact.
Training and development: Employers
can provide training and development
opportunities for workers to help themunderstand and build skills around the
Meaningful Work Standards. This should
include a particular focus on upskilling
managers and leaders around Meaningful
Work and tactics to elevate Meaningful Work
experiences and outcomes.
Community engagement/ESG
contributions/responsible businessobjectives: Employers can use theStandards to engage with communities,
contribute to social, environmental, andeconomic development, and addresspressing issues through initiatives,
volunteering, and partnerships with not-forprofits.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Governments and non-governmentorganisations
Governments and non-government organisations (including nonfor-profit organisations) can use the Meaningful Work Standards
to align and strengthen their efforts in empowering individuals,
building healthy communities, and making a positive difference.

Community engagement: Leverage the Meaningful Work
Standards to engage with local communities and address their
specific needs and challenges. This may involve partnering with
community organisations, government agencies, and otherstakeholders in the local ecosystem, to develop collaborative
solutions that positively impact issues such as education, health,and social equity.

By integrating the Standards into their service delivery,
approaches, practices, and policies, these organisations can more
effectively work with young people to meet their needs and thoseof their communities. Adopting the T3 model as a structured
framework provides guidance on where to begin.

Advocacy and outreach: Advocate for policies and initiatives
that promote Meaningful Work Standards within their respective
countries. Engage with government officials, policymakers, andstakeholders to raise awareness and integrate Meaningful Work
into social and economic development agendas.

For governments in particular, the Meaningful Work Standards will
be an important input to ensure that young people are included
in policy decisions and have an influence over their futures. This
will also ensure that policies are effective and relevant, to lead tooverall impacts on young people's relationship with work.

Training and development: Provide training and development
opportunities for staff and volunteers to implement Meaningful
Work Standards effectively. Provide resources and skills training toeffectively communicate the importance of Meaningful Work andits impact on young people and communities.

The Standards can help organisations achieve various outcomes,
including but not limited to:

Activating the Country-level ecosystem: Utilise the Meaningful
Work Standards to activate the country-level ecosystem and drive
targeted initiatives that address the specific needs and challengesof young people in their respective countries. This involves
collaborating with government agencies, corporate partners,
and other stakeholders to advocate for change, secure funding,
implement initiatives and garner support using a common frameand evidence-based recommendations.

Program development: The Standards should align to theprogram goals and objectives that are led or facilitated by nongovernment organisations. This includes creating initiatives
that promote personal growth, skill development, community
engagement, and address local social issues. By integrating theStandards into program development, program leaders canensure their efforts are in line with a shared agenda and actionable
recommendations.

30

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Key findings andnext steps

31

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Key findings
This report identifies three key findings thatwill shape the redesign of work for young
people, improve their access to meaningfulemployment and prepare them for thechallenges of modern and future work.
These findings support the need for acommon language to foster alignmentand collaboration across the work
ecosystem. They highlight the importanceof involving young people in decisionmaking, establishing Meaningful Work
Standards as an advocacy platform, andimplementing targeted interventions at alllevels. These findings reinforce the central
hypothesis and emphasise the importanceof a unified approach for driving positivechange and collaboration. The detailed
findings are discussed below:(1) There is a need for convening,organising, activating, and amplifying
the ecosystem and stakeholders
who can support young people into
Meaningful Work. These include all
stakeholders who play a role in shaping
the landscape for Meaningful Work andproviding opportunities for young people.
This includes family and friends, employers,
education institutions, governments,
policy and change-makers, community
organisations, not-for-profits, and nongovernment organisations.
Every part of the ecosystem plays a crucialrole, and can make significant gains ifyoung people are meaningfully engaged
in work. While young people are the focal
point of this research, we find that they look
to different places – including employers,
governments, and non-governmentorganisations – for support throughout
their careers.
(2) Young people need to be engaged indesigning education and employment
solutions as we transition into new
economies. The active involvement ofyoung people in this research was criticalto understanding what young people
need and want from education, training
and work. The insights from the YouthMeaningful Work Survey and deep listening
sessions make it clear that young people
are eager to be involved in these processes– to speak for themselves and their futures.
32

Our survey found that young people
believe the lack of skills, qualifications
or experience is the biggest barrier
to achieving their future work goals.
Young people are aware of the skills
mismatch they face, which will only become
more pronounced as economies pivot
towards emerging areas like clean energy,
digital technology and care sectors.
Young people need to be actively involved
in designing what work and training looks
like to facilitate this transition, and ensure
the workforce is equipped with the rightskills in the right areas.
(3) Meaningful Work Standards need tobe established and widely adopted tosupport young people and drive global
advocacy. A key finding of the research isthat the absence of a universally agreed
language and framework for Meaningful
Work creates many challenges, including
disparate efforts and potentially outdated
approaches.
This report puts forward a framework forwhat Meaningful Work should be for young
people, based on insights from young
people, case studies and existing literature.
The inclusion of both the Meaningful Workdefinition and Meaningful Work Standards
aims to provide a common language andstructure that stakeholders can use to
create opportunities for Meaningful Work.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Next steps
The journey towards improving access and participation in Meaningful Work for young people
and better preparing them for modern work must continue with four key proposed actions:Figure 1.5: Next steps

Influencing theGovernment
AgendaEngaging the
Employer

TestingStandards
across theecosystem

Designingaccountability
and progressmeasures

Implementing
pilot initiatives

Developing
stakeholder
specific
implementation
strategies

All steps will involve significant collaboration across stakeholders to ensure thatoutcomes are effective, impactful and targeted.
Source: Deloitte and YMCA.

Influencing the government agenda:
The Meaningful Work Standards andframework offers governments theopportunity to reflect on their current
youth approaches and reset their agenda
to focus on the needs and aspirations ofyoung people.
First, the new Meaningful Work Agenda
can enhance existing youth programs byrealigning employment policy outcomes tothe Meaningful Work Standards. Existing
programs and policies can be evaluated,
reviewed and reformed including; fairwages, safe working conditions, social
protection, and rights at work.
The Meaningful Work research campaign
has spotlighted the skills gap thatcurrently exists between the skills young
people have and the capabilities thatare in demand in current and future job
markets, and governments can play a rolein incentivising and encouraging young
people to adopt these skills. Part of thiswork would involve strengthening labour
market information systems to improvethe collection and dissemination of datato assist young people in making informed
decisions, and for government agencies totailor their existing programs to target theneeds of young workers and employers.
Furthermore, there is also a role forgovernment to incentivise and support
education and training providers to realigncurriculum and learning models for theskills employers need today.
33

Second, the Meaningful Work Agenda
can also initiate new programs to ensure
access to Meaningful Work Standards.
Youth employment guarantee schemesthat strengthen post-secondary education
pathways to employment or qualification,and facilitate mobility to different typesof contracts, ensuring equitable accessto social protections and employment
benefits. Youth entrepreneurship andstart-up support can also be enhanced
by increasing access to funding,mentorship and business development
services. New public-private partnerships
and procurement rules can also be
implemented to increase civil sector
engagement and grow agenda awarenessfor Meaningful Work.
Engaging the employer: Youth distressis not only an issue for young people, butalso employers in that creating a robust,
sustainable and healthy job market is in theemployer interest. Employers are facing
skills shortages, forecasted to rise withaging populations, that can be mitigatedby integrating labour market data into thecareer planning and upskilling approaches
to ensure young people build the skills
employers need.

Building diverse youth talent is necessary,hiring young people with different levelsof skills, and using effective recruitment
onboarding and skills programs to jumpstart youth in their organisations. In doing
so, employers not only build a good
reputation, becoming a more attractive
employer for young people, but they also
meet their internal skills needs.
Outside of traditional employer
arrangements, ‘informal work’ is common
for young people, particularly in the Global
South. The broader business sector has
a responsibility to formalise employment
arrangements, where possible, or tomonitor the wages and benefits provided
to these young people to ensure they haveaccess to their entitled social protections.
Pathways to permanent employment
can include longer-term contracts,
apprenticeships, on-the-job training
programs or salaried and wage work as
opposed to by every piece of work.

Future Ready: Reimagining Meaningful Work for Young People

Testing the Standards across theecosystem: Efforts should be made totest, review and build on the Meaningful
Work Standards across the ecosystem,with a focus on the intent of each Standard
and the T3 model. This involves engaging
stakeholders from various sectors,organisations, and demographics toassess the applicability and feasibility of
the Standards in diverse contexts. It will
also be important to evolve the framework
overtime.
This may provide an opportunity forfurther consolidation and collaboration
across employers, governments and nongovernment organisations to share bestpractice policies and refine the Standards
so that they remain relevant over time.
Again, it will be critical that young people
are included in these conversations toensure that the outcomes are relevant andeffective to their futures.
Designing accountability and progressmeasures: To ensure ongoing progress
on Meaningful Work, it will be critical todevelop measurement metrics. This could
include annual surveys of young people(to ensure that their voices continue todrive policies and changes in this space),
the creation of a ‘Meaningful Work Index’(which would compare countries andtheir progress on related indicators suchas the Edelman Trust Barometer, youth
unemployment, skills development, wellbeing and more), or stakeholder-level
reporting (i.e. placing requirements on
employers or governments to outline what
they have done to progress young people’srole in work).
This will also be critical from an
accountability lens: it is not enough simply
to agree with the need for Meaningful
Work, we must ensure that stakeholders
are actively working towards creating
opportunities for young people to engage
with Meaningful Work.

34

Implementing Pilot Initiatives: Identify
and implement pilots with key stakeholders
to test the Meaningful Work Standards.
These pilots should focus on assessing
and gathering real-world evidence of theirrelevance, effectiveness, and value within
individual and diverse contexts. By closely
monitoring and evaluating the outcomes ofthese pilot programs, we can gather further
evidence to validate and further evolve thedefinition and Standards.
This should leverage examples of what isalready working as a first step. We knowthat many young people do have a positive
experience at work and with different
parts of the ecosystem. Key questions
include: what are their employers doingthat facilitate this? What policies havegovernments been able to implement
successfully, and how can they be scaled
to different countries? How can nongovernment organisations continue tosupport young people and what areas?
Developing stakeholder specificimplementation strategies: Finally,
it is important to create stakeholder
specific implementation strategies thatcan practically create more and better
Meaningful Work opportunities for young
people. This is the culmination of thesenext steps – which engage deeply withdifferent stakeholders – and will be moreprescriptive in nature, so that real changeis achieved.

Conclusion
The report Future Ready: Reimagining
Meaningful Work for Young People,
represents a significant collaborative
effort between the World YMCA,
Y Australia, Deloitte Australia and 10,000
young people. The report establishes acommon framework and language to beembraced by stakeholders across thework ecosystem.
As part of YMCA’s Vision 2030, this reportbuilds upon Crisis of Opportunity: Young
People Navigating the New Work Order andhighlights the transformation needed
across the work ecosystem to elevate,
prepare, and support young people more
effectively in the modern world of work.
Reflecting on the insights and proposedsolutions included in this report, thefuture of Meaningful Work for young
people hinges on collective action andcommitment to change. These findings
serve as a clear call to action, urging us
to embark on a transformative journey
toward redesigning work with, and for,young people.
By embracing a common language
and framework, fostering ongoingengagement with young voices, andimplementing targeted interventions
across all levels of social work, we canpave the way for a brighter future—
one where Meaningful Work is not just a
concept but a tangible reality for every
young person, their communities, andsociety. This report endeavours to ignitechange, inspire collaboration, and build
a world where every young individual
can thrive.

This publication contains general information only, and none of Deloitte Touche
Tohmatsu Limited, its member firms, or their related entities (collectively the“Deloitte Network”) is, by means of this publication, rendering professional advice
or services. Before making any decision or taking any action that may affect yourfinances or your business, you should consult a qualified professional adviser.
No entity in the Deloitte Network shall be responsible for any loss whatsoever
sustained by any person who relies on this publication.
Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (“DTTL”), its
global network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL (also referred
to as “Deloitte Global”) and each of its member firms and their affiliated entities
are legally separate and independent entities. DTTL does not provide services toclients. Please see www.deloitte.com/about to learn more.
About Deloitte
Deloitte is a leading global provider of audit and assurance, consulting, financial
advisory, risk advisory, tax and related services. Our network of member firms in
more than 150 countries and territories serves four out of five Fortune Global
500®companies. Learn how Deloitte’s approximately 286,000 people make an
impact that matters at www.deloitte.com.
About Deloitte Asia Pacific
Deloitte Asia Pacific Limited is a company limited by guarantee and a member firmof DTTL. Members of Deloitte Asia Pacific Limited and their related entities provide
services in Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, East Timor, Federated Statesof Micronesia, Guam, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar,
New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Thailand, The MarshallIslands, The Northern Mariana Islands, The People’s Republic of China (incl.
Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR), The Philippines and Vietnam, in each of which
operations are conducted by separate and independent legal entities.
About Deloitte Australia
In Australia, the Deloitte Network member is the Australian partnership ofDeloitte Touche Tohmatsu. As one of Australia’s leading professional services
firms. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and its affiliates provide audit, tax, consulting,and financial advisory services through approximately 8,000 people across thecountry. Focused on the creation of value and growth, and known as an employerof choice for innovative human resources programs, we are dedicated to helping
our clients and our people excel. For more information, please visit our web site atwww.deloitte.com.au
Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.
Member of Deloitte Asia Pacific Limited and the Deloitte Network.
© 2024 Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
Designed by CoRe Creative Services. RITM1703295