Wanted: Companies To Hire Teens
Spagnoletti
Engelhardt
Teenagers who are looking for jobs are in trouble. The national unemployment rate for people ages 16 to 19 is 24.9 percent, which hasn't been seen since the Great Depression.
With school out and more local teens looking for jobs, it's clear that many will come up empty and wind up disappointed this summer. For a teen, the cost of a jobless summer is much greater than missing out on a weekly paycheck. Without job experience, many teens will not learn valuable workplace skills including accountability, time management and self-respect: keys to future employability and success. To fill the unemployment gap, YouthWorks, a state subsidized youth job program, is fighting back by offering summer jobs to teens. But the program won't succeed without community support, especially from employers in Central Massachusetts.
Last year, 3,745 teens across the state obtained summer jobs through YouthWorks, including 520 in the Worcester area. To qualify for the program, an individual must be between the ages of 14 and 21 and have a family income below 130 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Preference for the program is given to “at-risk” youths, including juvenile delinquents, minorities and children of single parents.
YouthWorks carries many benefits. Jeffery Turgeon, who runs the Worcester program, believes the greatest is learning how to work as part of a team, how to organize one's time and the self-respect employment provides a young adult. Furthermore, YouthWorks is not a handout. The youths have to work for their paychecks and learn the value of a full day's work. At the same time, local employers also benefit. The program helps with hiring, subsidizes the work that's done and allows employers to screen for future employees.
Recently, the state granted the program an additional $6 million, enabling it to operate at its 2011 funding level. While the application process is competitive due to the tough economy, YouthWorks is stepping into the void and matching teens with employers.
Each year, the statewide debate over the allocation of funds becomes increasingly heated. With an increasing number of programs promising to kickstart the stagnant economy and a decreasing level of funds being allocated to these programs, something has to give. Currently, the battle for funding for YouthWorks' 2013 budget is being waged in the state Senate. But the added benefits of the program make it an investment the state cannot afford to cut. Many organizations within the community have stepped up to help, including the Worcester Community Action Council, Worcester Interfaith and UMass Memorial, which recently donated $493,000. Employers can also help out by hiring local teenagers through the program. They can help you get work done while you give them experience that can be critical for their futures.
Everybody remembers their first job and what they learned from it. All teens should have the opportunity to learn the same lessons.
Anthony Spagnoletti is a member of the class of 2014 at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. Bryan Engelhardt is an assistant professor of economics at the college who specialized in labor-related issues.
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