The Trades Union Congress (TUC) published a report today and it claims 26% are out of work and that young black men are more likely to be unemployed than any other ethnic group.
According to the report, young black women are the next most likely to be out of work (17%), followed by white and Asian men (both at 16%).
The proportion of young people who are not in work or education has been more stable said the TUC. Worklessness rates for black and Asian youngsters fell between 2002 and 2010, most likely because high numbers of young people from these groups entered further and higher education.
However, the report found that in the past two years worklessness rates have started rising again. Young black men have once again been the most affected, increasing from 15% to 22% in the past two years.
The abolishment of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) and the scrapping of college-based apprenticeships are likely to have played a key role in holding back education prospects for young black men, the TUC claimed.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: "The UK is in the midst of a youth jobs crisis. Over a million youngsters are out of work and many more are struggling to find the finances needed to further their education.
"Last week the prime minister singled out employment as a great success of the Government. That's cold comfort to the one in four young black men struggling for work, or the one in six jobless young black women."
Barber added: "It is shocking that so many young people are unable to find jobs. Ministers have slashed support to help them get their careers off the ground.
"This short-sighted attitude is not just making young people angry, it is hurting the parents and grandparents of young people who desperately want them to have a better start to their working lives."
