Fewer Summer Jobs For Teens In U.S. Due To Economic Slowdown

All Headline News ^ | June 7, 2008 | Jupiter Kalambakal

[Diana in Wisconsin]

New York, N.Y. (AHN) - Summer jobs for American teenagers in retail stores have become difficult to find due to economic slowdown across the country.

Government reports showed May 2008 marked the biggest increase in the teenage jobless rate - jumping from 15.4 percent in April to 18.7 in May. The U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics has been keeping such information since 1948.

For five consecutive months, total U.S. payrolls have been plummeting, coupled with a slowdown in consumer spending.

The tough summer job market for teens mirrors the adult job market as a report released on Friday revealed. Overall unemployment increased to 5.5 percent in May, a half a percentage point higher than April and a full point higher than the 4.5 percent of Americans that were out of work a year ago.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

T-shirt folders at The Gap are deeply saddened. :(

P.S. If you actually WANT to work, can show up on time, are good about your hygiene and can string words together into complete sentences...we're hiring! :)

[PatrickF4]

Wow, man, I guess that lets me out. But, dude, it's all Bush's fault for not legalizing pot, man. Like, ya know? Like, like, kinda like you know. /sarc

[Kieri]

It’s deja vu all over again from a Michigan viewpoint when it comes to these stories. We’ve been dealing with a one-state recession for *years.* There’ve been a slew of “fewer jobs for teens” stories since March.

Hard to be sympathetic when the national press starts whining. Yes, I know, a lot of MI’s problems are of our own liberal-led government and the union thugs (AND Detroit’s corruption/text scandals), but it’s hard not to drag out the world’s smallest violin.

[rayvd]

Minimum wage anyone?

Carpe Diem
Another link

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Were you the doper that called my garden center last week looking for a 50 lb. bag of bat guano to feed his pot plants? LOL!

It gets worse in the winter months when they’re in the store trying to buy light racks that “fit in a closet” as well as fish emulsion, vermiculite for rooting “cuttings” and other such things. *Rolleyes*

[Oldexpat]

Seems I just saw a story about how they couldn’t get young people for jobs in the Wisconsin Dells and they had their foreign worker visas reduced.

[tiredoflaundry]

Hmmmmmmmm both the Mc’D’s & the Burger King by me have “we’re hiring” signs out front!

[AGreatPer]

I do the hiring at Hershey Park for summer jobs. Had to increase my foreign hiring 15% this year. US kids just don’t want these jobs.

[Oldhunk]

I wonder how many jobs would be available for the teens if all the illegals went home.

[DB]

Exactly minimum wage is the single biggest barrier for a teen and a summer job.

[keats5]

Here in Ohio, my boys can’t seem to get any time off. It would be a blessing for them to get a day off once in a while.

[chainsaw]

Fewer Summer Jobs For Teens In U.S. Due To Democrat Refusal to Allow Drilling For Oil in (ANWR,off shore, and shale oil) and forcing the price of gas sky high.

All our money is going to Saudi Arabia!

Fixed.

[SlapHappyPappy]

I don’t know about high school students, but we are filling temporary clerical positions with college students left and right this summer. For the good ones we can have them in a job in a day or two of their registering with our placement firm.

[nyyankeefan]

Fewer Summer Jobs For Teens In U.S. Due To ILLEGALS taking quite a number of them!!!

[Chode]

from 12 till i got out of highschool, i mowed lawns and washed/waxed cars all summer then raked leaves in fall and shoveled sidewalks and driveways all winter

i got my working papers at 16 then started working at the local paper and vineyards too...

and i Always had more jing in my pocket then even the rick kids cause all they had was what mommy and daddy let them have

now the paper is gone, middle age women tend the vines, and i can't find ONE kid to mow my lawn even with MY MOWER... let alone rake my leaves or shovel in the winter

[hermgem]

Diana highlights a 5.5% unemployment rate but she conveniently omits that student employment encountered drastic cuts when minimum wages were elevated to levels not commensurate to student contributions.
The Nancy Pelosi Harry Reid team closed a very valuable door engaging students or beginners in the job market.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“The Nancy Pelosi Harry Reid team closed a very valuable door engaging students or beginners in the job market.”

Well, I didn’t MEAN to omit anything because I hate those two with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns! If I can blame anything on them, trust me, I will, LOL!

And you are absolutely correct about the minimum wage mandates. We have one where I live. We have kids with NO experience at ANYTHING other than popping zits and playing X-Box DEMANDING $10 and up an hour to stock shelves or gather shopping carts, or carry items to a customer’s car.

*Rolleyes*

And when we DO get a decent kid to work for us, ‘their eyes are on the prize’ and they fully understand that this job is just a layover on their way to college, success and a Real Life.

[Kimmers]

My teen son is making great money working at horse shows....parking cars, delivering feed, jump crew.....wherever the boss puts him...

It is a hot stinky job with real long days but the money is good....the trouble with teens is they want the right kind of job so they can still hang with their friends and text them throughout the day.....

[peggybac]

I check the classifieds often and there are TONS of part time jobs. It seems all the mobile phone companies are always seeking help. They seldom advertise but Macy’s, Sears, etc. are always hiring.

[Sender]

I took some teenager’s job at Barnes & Noble, and I’m not sorry. I needed it. And I can do a better job. I’m keeping it.