It used to be quite common for teenagers to work part-time jobs on the weekend or during the summer to save up money for a vehicle and college. Unfortunately, as the minimum wage has risen, more older adults are finding hourly work appealing. Thus, more employers have been hiring adults instead of minors. Reports show that in 2000, 55% of teenagers were able to find jobs. In 2011, this percentage shot down to 28%. Why does this matter, and should employers consider hiring teenagers?
The Economy Needs Working Teens
There are plenty of teenagers that, unfortunately, lack the work ethic and academic skills to earn scholarships for college. However, many of these teens still desire to attend college and get degrees. It was normal in the past for these teenagers to work after school or during the summer to save up for college. Even high performing students who have completed most of their classes by their senior year and have half-day schedules want to work after school (they may either need vehicles to accommodate their new schedules or money for what their scholarships don’t cover).
The problem is, teenagers aren’t being hired anymore. Adults who are willing to make minimum wage are, especially now that minimum wage is increasing. Because of this, more and more students are having to take out loans for college, and our student debt crisis is rising.
Not hiring teenagers can also have long-term economic repercussions. Experts predict the teenagers that employers fail to hire now may come back later for jobs in their adulthood lacking the work skills they never earned. This may lead to a potential skills gap in the future.
Finding Qualified Teenagers
We don’t recommend hiring teenagers for the sake of hiring teenagers. Instead, use Refered. Refered is a recruitment and referral software program that provides your employees with incentives to refer qualified employees. Request a demo today.
