According to La Tercera, the business movement Empresas x Chile seeks to promote youth employment by encouraging technical and vocational internships (TP), the periods of work that students at secondary schools and in technical programs complete before graduating.
The clearest message came from Susana Jiménez, president of the Confederation of Production and Commerce (CPC), the trade association that brings together the country's main business sectors. "We need to restore a labor market that is weakened," she said.
Jiménez spoke during the first of three installments of "Empresas en Acción", a discussion series organized by La Tercera and Empresas x Chile.
Education Minister María Paz Arzola and Banco de Chile general manager Eduardo Ebensperger also took part in the conversation. According to the outlet, the three discussed the challenges of connecting education more closely with the world of work and creating more opportunities for young people.
The idea behind TP internships is simple. They serve as a bridge: students arrive at a company with classroom training and leave with real experience, which is often the first hurdle when a young person seeks their first job.
The source does not specify the movement's concrete goals, how many companies belong to it or how many internships it expects to create. It also provides no youth unemployment figures to support the assessment of a weakened labor market.
The conversation comes as the Ministry of Education faces debate over the 2027 Budget, which freezes the ministry's funding under the proposal submitted by the Ministry of Finance.
Two more installments of the "Empresas en Acción" series remain, with dates and participants yet to be announced.
