Youth Agency and Structural Precarity in European Labor Markets

This article examines the relationship between youth agency and structural precarity in contemporary European labor markets, with particular attention to its implications for social and community inequalities. Drawing on harmonized Eurostat data, the study adopts a multiscalar quantitative approach combining longitudinal (2009–2025), cross-national, and regional analyses. Structural precarity is operationalized through a composite Structural Precarity Index (SPI), while youth agency is proxied by self-employment, interpreted cautiously as an ambivalent form of economic participation. The findings indicate that youth precarity is persistent and structurally embedded, with stable cross-national disparities and a pronounced North–South divide. The relationship between self-employment and precarity appears nonlinear, suggesting adaptive strategies rather than opportunity-driven trajectories. Within-country analysis further reveals significant territorial inequalities, highlighting the place-dependent nature of youth transitions. The study advances a relational understanding of agency and emphasizes how structural precarity shapes not only individual pathways but also broader patterns of community inequality and social cohesion.