Teen Jobless Rate A Cause for Concern – National Consumers League

The Washington Post recently ran a story about teens having a tough time finding jobs. The paper profiled this young man who, at 19, has been searching for work for four years with no luck. He’s pounded the pavement and Internet job boards, looked for work in malls, at banks, and in other places, and he has yet to successfully get an offer. This young man, the reporter writes, isn’t alone: “Young adults seeking low-skill service jobs for the summer must contend with older, laid-off workers, illegal immigrants and college graduates who cannot find work in their fields, as well as with cuts in federal summer jobs programs.”

This seems like bad news for a lot of reasons. If young people are having unusual difficulty finding work, perhaps they’d be tempted to lower their standards or accept job offers against their better judgment. This summer, NCL is working hard to educate the youngest workers about the kinds of jobs that are so dangerous that they should be passed up – during summer vacation from school and year-round. A tough economy may make these jobs more difficult to avoid, but the dangers are still very real. Learn more about NCL’s work with the Child Labor Coalition to end the worst forms of child labor in the United States and abroad.