NEW YORK, Feb. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, is advocating for community-based ecosystems that better prepare youth for jobs at today's United Nations Economic and Social Council (UNECOSOC) event, "Breaking New Ground: Partnerships for More and Better Jobs for Young People."

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110330/CG73938LOGO-a)

David Arkless, ManpowerGroup President of Corporate and Government Affairs, will moderate the panel "Building New Business Models for Youth Employment" at the UNECOSOC event, organized in part by the International Labor Office, the United Nations Office for Partnerships and the United Nations Global Compact.

Speakers on this panel include:

• Linda Ben, Executive Vice President of Junior Chamber International, South Africa
• Chris Bashinelli, Executive Director, Bridge the Gap TV
• Eriko Yamaguchi, CEO and Founder, Motherhouse Company
• AbdulMohsen Al-Badr, Director of Programme Development, Al Ghad Youth Forum

Three other panels, with UN officials and corporate executives, are taking place this afternoon. At the root of their problem-solving agenda is the world's youth unemployment rate, which now stands at 12.7 percent.

"More youth could enter the workforce, and elevate the economic status of communities worldwide, if they received support from both companies and public agencies in their communities," said David Arkless, ManpowerGroup President of Corporate and Government Affairs. "The best examples of youth successfully transitioning into the business world come from regional incubators that have prioritized soft and hard skills training; supported enterprises launched by youth with adequate policies and programs; and have incentivized youth career development by lowering taxes for employers who train, mentor and hire young interns."

Effective youth employment task forces — driven by governments, business and civil organizations — cite new options for catapulting youth into careers. Weaving entrepreneur training into education and changing standardized testing to rate skills needed in real time, by today's employers — are career development strategies that today's panel will address.

Separately, ManpowerGroup Director of Global Social Responsibility and Knowledge Sharing Chuck Bartels will speak tomorrow on a panel held by the International Federation of Business and Professional Women, taking place in the United Nations Church Center. During the session on "A Better Life for Rural Women: Challenges and Opportunities," he will discuss two ManpowerGroup Vocational Training Centers in Tamil Nadu, India — which were launched after the 2004 tsunami. The centers have prepared 8,000 survivors of the disaster for new occupations. A majority of the individuals who have been retrained are women from surrounding villages. Roughly 1,500 micro-businesses have been established by trainees.

About ManpowerGroup

ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, creates and delivers high-impact solutions that enable our clients to achieve their business goals and enhance their competitiveness. With over 60 years of experience, our $22 billion company creates unique time to value through a comprehensive suite of innovative solutions that help clients win in the Human Age. These solutions cover an entire range of talent-driven needs from recruitment and assessment, training and development, and career management, to outsourcing and workforce consulting. ManpowerGroup maintains the world's largest and industry-leading network of nearly 3,900 offices in over 80 countries and territories, generating a dynamic mix of an unmatched global footprint with valuable insight and local expertise to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, across all industry sectors, small and medium-sized enterprises, local, multinational and global companies. By connecting our deep understanding of human potential to the ambitions of clients, ManpowerGroup helps the organizations and individuals we serve achieve more than they imagined — because their success leads to our success. And by creating these powerful connections, we create power that drives organizations forward, accelerates personal success and builds more sustainable communities. We help power the world of work. The ManpowerGroup suite of solutions is offered through ManpowerGroup™ Solutions, Manpower®, Experis™ and Right Management®. Learn more about how the ManpowerGroup can help you win in the Human Age at www.manpowergroup.com.

ManpowerGroup is the most trusted brand in the industry, being the only company in our industry to be named to the Ethisphere Institute's 2011 World's Most Ethical Companies list for our proven commitment to ethical business practices, including an outstanding commitment to ethical leadership, compliance practices and corporate social responsibility. In addition, ManpowerGroup has also been recognized as the industry leader by Fortune magazine, who named the company in first place on its 2011 list of the Most Admired Companies in the temporary help sector.

In January 2011, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, ManpowerGroup announced the world has entered the Human Age, where talent has replaced capital as the key competitive differentiator. This concept of talentism as the new capitalism continues to resonate and was echoed as a core theme of the 2012 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Learn more about this new age at www.manpowergroup.com/humanage

Gain access to ManpowerGroup's extensive thought leadership papers, annual Talent Shortage surveys and the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, one of the most trusted indices of employment activity in the world, via the ManpowerGroup World of Work Insight iPad application. This thought leadership app explores the challenges faced by employers navigating the changing world of work and provides in-depth commentary, analysis, insight and advice on strategies for success. 

Follow ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO Jeff Joerres on Twitter: twitter.com/manpowergroupjj. Joerres is one of only six Fortune 500 CEOs who leverages a Twitter account to get his message out.

SOURCE ManpowerGroup