Teen employment has reached the lowest rate on record since
World War II, with 26% of 16-19 year olds being employed (2001 data), a 19%
drop from 2000. While there have been
some rises in enrollment rate in college and high school, the modest increases
have not been able to explain why so many youth are not employed. And even if they are employed, they are most
likely to be underutilized. College age
adult employment has also dropped from 72% in 2000 to 61% in 2011.
Education has been shown to be a problem, with high school
not being able to prepare students for a job.
With high schools not being able to prepare students for college
coursework and job training, apprenticeships and applied 2-year degrees not
being a priority for the large number of American youths who don’t even make it
to college.
5 comments:
From my experience being a hiring manager for retail jobs, we have always been discouraged from hiring teens, specifically under the age of 18. Younger people are less attractive to companies because there are so many laws regulating the number of breaks you must provide them, how long of a shift they can work, and how late they can work. It just seems to be too much of a hassle to hire persons from this age group. It is interesting to see that college age adult employment has decreased as well. Something bigger is happening and it is difficult to pin point one thing. Possibly a difference in work ethic amongst younger people? Maybe there is a relationship with work ethic and college attendance?
This article was not shocking to me at all. If older populations are entering the workforce because of the previous economic recession as well as adults entering lower tiers of employment. I have experienced this in my life. My father was let go from his job, so my mother entered the work force in retail. These workers are more attractive to employers because they do not have limited hours they are available because they are in school.
As stated above I feel this is just the back end of the "Great Recession". We are just now starting to see better times as more and more people get hired. Retail and stores alike will probably hire less for a bit as people are beginning to get their old jobs back.
This is not surprising at all. The teens and college students have less experience. The companies want to hire people that are already trained, so they do not have to waste time and money to train them.
While teens and college students may have less experience, they will also be working longer than someone who theoretically does have the experience. And if no one is willing to hire and train them, what is going to end up happening when people start retiring and those who have experience who are in the entry level positions which do require certain skills and training move up in a company? It would still come to those who were passed over because they didn't have experience, and never got the chance to gain experience, but they will be older, and less likely to stay with a company who passed them over before. Would it not be better to potentially hire the younger worker, instill company loyalty, and be able to utilize more of their working years, than to potentially create a labor force that is distrustful of companies and more likely to switch companies?
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