Teens Are Having a Hard Time Getting Summer Jobs

The Atlantic ^ | Jul 9 2014 | Joe Pinsker

[george76]

since working in the summer can predict future job prospects, that matters.

...

Hires of 16- to 19-year-olds in May and June dropped 12 percent in comparison to last year. The teen unemployment rate has been in decline in the past year

...

teens who work evenings or summers are more likely to find better jobs and earn more money down the line.

The reason summer jobs can predict future success is that they allow teens to get acquainted with the working world and to expand their networks. Interestingly, it barely matters what the job consists of.

[17th Miss Regt]

Gotta find jobs for all the refugees streaming up from the south of the border. You can work ‘em hard, short pay them and they won’t dare complain.

[Biggirl]

Of course, all those illegals are taking them.

[mothball]

“We ain’t rich like y’all, but one day we will be!! Cuz we got Brock OBAMA!!!!”

[C19fan]

The silence of the article on the number 1 reason American teens no longer work summer jobs is deafening; immigrants and foreign temporary workers. I live near Williamsburg, VA and take the family around there often. It seems at least half the employees at the water park are foreign youth; it seems kids from Turkey are the hot commodity this year. Same thing at the restaurant we ate at; all the temporary hires to work the summer tourist season are foreigners. Don’t say this is due to Americans not wanting to work. There is William & Mary Univ in town and I am sure plenty of those students would like to earn some money working summer jobs as I used to.

[Red Badger]

When I was 13 in 1968 I mowed lawns, collected soda bottles and did odd jobs for people in my small town of less than 400 in rural MISSISSIPPI.
Work is there if you want it....................

[The Working Man]

I wonder if this article has any relationship to this one?

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3178325/posts

Jeff Flake Sen-R AZ

Flake, the guest of the show’s occasionally occurring “Center Seat” segment, admitted the rise of a populist movement opposing any immigration reform movement that included a version of amnesty. However, he admitted to being perplexed as to why there’s such an opposition stating there’s a need for not only low-skill labor “particularly in the agricultural areas and hospitality areas,” but high-skill labor of “those in the STEM fields.”

Somehow I think there is a real correlation here... /S

[traderrob6]

No, really?

[Texas Eagle]

How can this be? I heard President Horse's Ass just say the other day that by most measures things are much better since he took office.

I guess the operative word there is "most".

If the man can't even correctly define the words "smidgeon" or "corruption", how can we be sure he knows the meaning of the word "most"

[Russ]

I have been reading the same headline and story every year since 1968. You’re right, work is there if you want it. It was then and is now.

[Red Badger]

Oh, I forgot to mention I HAD A PAPER ROUTE TOO!.....................

[grania]

Money that's always been spent (even when I was a kid) on gov jobs that improved communities and taught teens the work ethic is now being spent babysitting central american "children". And on recreational global warmongering, including arming, training and financing the worst threat to civilization the world has ever seen (ISIS). And bailing out banks. And on bonuses to VA employees whose actions kill vets. etc, etc ad nauseum.

It's because gov isn't about US citizens anymore. It's about dirty deals between the DC crowd and globalists to enrich and empower them. The rest of us? We're a cash crop for the elite.

The good news is US citizens are finally catching on. The bad news is any turnaround is going to be painful.

[Alberta's Child]

I think there is another factor at work here, and since this trend really started back in the 1990s when unemployment rates were genuinely lower, I think this might be the dominant one.

I don't think a lot of kids these days even think of summer employment at all. In fact, I'd suggest that there are large sectors of the U.S. economy that would prefer NOT to see kids work in the summers. The entire economy of many summer resort destinations, for example, revolves around young people spending weeks or months there, spending all of Mom and Dad's money they can possibly get their hands on.

[mmichaels1970]

Tons of places around here have a minimum age of 18. My 18 year old hasn't had a problem while my 17 year old has.

One of my theories is that business are faced with a crush of government regulations, child labor laws, and liability concerns. Combine that with the smallest labor participation rate since the 70's.

It's just simpler to set a minimum age at 18 and get tons of ready and willing adults to take jobs that kids once did. It's just too much of a hassle to hire kids nowadays. When I was young, I used to landscape 50-60 hours per week easily. Now I'd guess my employer would have to offer me health insurance?

[Java4Jay]

Americans Lose While Immigrants Gain

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3174770/posts

American-born workers have had a net loss in jobs since 2000, while all of the job growth since then has gone to immigrants

[tanknetter]

Consider that the “usual” June spike in part time jobs happened. There were 799,000 part time jobs were created (and 523,000 fulltime jobs lost for a net gain of 288,000 jobs)

So this year, the part time jobs DIDNT go to highschool and college kids looking for Summer work. Who, then, took them?

Part of the answer is buried out in the BLS June jobs report, showing that 275,000 of the part time jobs were for involuntary part time workers: workers who wanted full time work, but were unable to find it and having to settle for part time work.

The takeaway, therefore, is that kids looking for Summer job are in competition with and being shut out by older displaced fulltime workers.

[Cowgirl of Justice]

Well, they voted for change... guess they should have read the fine print:

SMALL CHANGE!!!!

[lurk]

I’ve said it before. Nursing homes are desperate for CNA’s, and they pay $9 + per hour.

[mmichaels1970]

Oh, I forgot to mention I HAD A PAPER ROUTE TOO!.....................

Adults have taken that over in my area.

Mowing lawns, adults have taken that over too...liability concerns.

Collecting aluminum cans has become less viable because adults are collecting them and taking them to the local recycling center (which is booming).

Babysitting has decreased because lots of people are getting pinched financially and are relying on grandma when they can.

I'm not saying work isn't out there though. A kid who really wants a job can find one. I'm only saying that it's pretty tough in my area.