Wetherspoon looks to the younger generation as it takes on teenagers

• JD Wetherspoon is launching a scheme to take on 1,000 16- and 17-year-olds in its pubs across the country. Picture: Jane Barlow

JD Wetherspoon, which has nearly 800 pubs in the UK including about 40 in Scotland, said the current tough employment environment for young people, including many teenagers struggling to get university places, was "at the forefront of our minds" in launching the initiative.

The company said the 16- and 17-year-olds would be employed both "front of house" and in the kitchens, delivering food and coffees to customers, tidying up and generally helping with the smooth running of outlets. However, they will not serve alcoholic drinks as that is prohibited by law.

Mandy Ferries, Wetherspoon's head of personnel and training, said: "Many (young people] are struggling to get into university.

"People don't think it is a viable option (for pubs to employ under-18s] because of the strict legislation on alcohol.

"But a third of Wetherspoon's business is in food, for instance we are big now on breakfasts, and there are plenty of opportunities for people of this age to work for the company. We believe many school-leavers will welcome the opportunity."

The new employees, who will join a couple of hundred 16- and 17-year-olds already working for the group, will also be offered the opportunity to study for NVQ qualifications with the option of completing a professional diploma and honours degree if they progress to a management position.

The Office for National Statistics said there are currently some 920,000 unemployed 16 to 24 year olds, with an unemployment rate in that age bracket of nearly 20 per cent. In Scotland there are about 95,000 unemployed in the same age category - a rate of 22.5 per cent.

A Wetherspoon source also said young staff getting to know the industry at this age could have the spin-off of creating a business with some of the youngest managers in the country.

The source at the group, whose pubs include The Standing Order in Edinburgh and The Robert Hamilton in Airdrie, said: "If these young people come to the age of 18 and want to continue with us we will be thrilled. They will have already spent two years getting to know the business and as we promote heavily from within we could then farther down the line have some of the youngest pub managers in the industry."

Wetherspoon, whose other Scottish pubs include The Robert the Bruce in Dumfries and Arbroath's Corn Exchange, also believes the initiative will be welcomed by its customers.

Ferries said: "The customers react very positively to the younger staff. They like the fact that our staff fully reflect the local community, young and old.In fact, one of our staff, in Nottingham, is 91 years old.

"We hope this job creation will help 17- and 18-year-olds in the current jobs climate, providing an alternative for them, and we hope to see a strong take-up nationwide."

Wetherspoon reports its full-year trading results on Friday.