Tight labor market has increased demand for teens in summer jobs

FILE - A female stocks food on a shelf at a Publix grocery store. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) A tight labor market is increasing demand for teenage workers and boosting their wages to higher-than-usual levels as many teens around the country look for jobs during their summer breaks.The proportion of Americans between the ages of 16 and 19 who have jobs has trended up in recent years, as nearly 34% of Americans in that age group had jobs in April compared to 30% in 2019, the last pre-pandemic summer, according to government data.Hourly pay has also trended up in the sorts of industries that typically employ teens, such as restaurants, retailers and amusement parks.

Pay in those industries rose about 5% in April compared to one year ago – above the typical pre-pandemic increase of 3% annually but only marginally higher than the 4.9% year-over-year inflation rate measured in April.

Despite the national unemployment rate remaining at roughly 3.4% in April, a historically low level, there are roughly 1.6 job openings for every unemployed person according to the Labor Dept.

In normal circumstances, the ratio would be roughly one-to-one.NEW COLLEGE GRADUATES GREETED WITH BEST JOB MARKET SINCE 1953Although the leisure and hospitality industry was hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic and remains about 402,000 workers – or about 2.4% – below its pre-pandemic levels as of April, hiring in the sector has been on the upswing.