Summer Jobs for Teens Sparse (But Help Set Course for a Teen's Future)

In a summer in which only one of three teenagers looking for a job will find it, there are some beacons of hope.

Some local businesses rely on teenagers and groups such as HandsOn Battle Creek and Junior Achievement of Southwest Michigan help connect those businesses with young jobseekers.


“Summer employment helps instill a sense of responsibility and confidence,” said Southwest Michigan Junior Achievement President Brad Kaufmann. “It gives them some money and they can start learning to manage it, and of course it helps out our economy as well.”



The employment-population ratio for 16 to 19-year-olds has fallen drastically from 37.4 percent in summer 2008 to 25.8 percent in May 2012, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.

http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/article/20120704/NEWS01/307040007/Summer-jobs-set-course-teens