It’s going to be a tough market for young people seeking jobs this summer.
Chicago-based outplacement company Challenger, Gray and Christmas is predicting that employers will add only 790,000 jobs during the months of May, June and July. That would be down slightly from last summer, when 801,000 jobs were created, and the lowest since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started tracking that data in 1948.
Economic factors are weighing on hiring decisions, according to Andy Challeger of Challenger, Gray and Christmas.
“We have seen rising inflation, extra cost of goods really start to affect the industries where teens usually get hired,” Challenger said. “Restaurants, scooping ice cream, working at amusement parks or summer camps, those types of classic teen jobs are being particularly squeezed in this environment.”
College student Alex Zinoviev is feeling the pinch while looking to add another job to the one he already has.
“Especially if you have no experience in any industry, it will be really tough this year,” Zinoviev said.
Not only are there fewer jobs available, but there are fewer young people looking for them. Challenger expects that only about 30% of teens expect to work this summer. In the 1970’s, he said, the number was closer to 60%.
“It’s not because they are lazier than teenagers of years past,” Challenger said. “They have real rational reasons: many of them are doing resume building activities like taking sports or extra curriculars during the summer, doing philanthropic work to build their resume up for college applications.”
Robert Vavra graduated from Columbus College last week and said he is already working with his professors to find a job in the music industry.
He said he hopes to “start off with an internship and go from there and maybe stay at the company.”
The City of Chicago expects to hire around 29,000 teens and young people as part of its Chicago Youth Works employment program, many of those at the park district.
For teens who are looking for work, Challenger offers the following advice:
- Start early before school lets out in June.
- Tap your network including teachers, coaches and managers at places you already go.
- Build your resume and use AI to polish it.
- Make a strong first impression. And keep your online presence clean.
- Follow up. If you haven’t heard back from a company a week or so after applying, check back in with them to show your interest.
- Learn from rejection. If you didn’t get the job, ask why and make adjustments to your next application.
