Teen Summer Jobs Are Down

School is almost out for teenagers across the country, and those hoping to land a summer job may have a tough time finding one. Last summer, teen hiring fell to its lowest level in nearly eight decades of Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and forecasters predict it could be even lower this summer. A Challenger, Gray & Christmas report predicts American teens will gain 790,000 jobs across May, June, and July, down from 801,000 last summer.

Last month, 5.193 million workers between the ages of 16 and 19 were employed, down from 5.487 million in April last year, according to BLS data. “With fewer teens already on payrolls heading into the busiest hiring months, the runway for a strong summer is narrower than it has been in years,” the report said.

Teens are facing the same challenging low-hire environment as adult job seekers. While U.S. employers added well over 100,000 jobs in March and April, hiring remains concentrated in select sectors like health care and social assistance – industries not typically known for employing high schoolers.

A few factors are contributing to this low-hire environment. The Challenger report identifies four: rising inflation and oil prices pushing up costs for businesses; self-checkout and automation replacing cashier and customer service roles; competition from older workers seeking out similar jobs; and a smaller teen labor force participation rate.

It notes that while the rate was near 50% in the 1970s and ‘80s, today it’s 33.8%, as teens pursue sports, academic programs, and other summer opportunities instead.

Source: USA Today