With summer only weeks away, Sacramento teens are discovering that the classic spring scramble for part-time work has morphed into months of silence and rejection. Students say they have sent out dozens of applications, sat through interview after interview, and then heard nothing back. For some, like 18-year-old Antelope High senior Harlin Babrah, persistence eventually worked, but the road to that first paycheck has been long and uncertain.
According to ABC10, Babrah put in at least 20 job applications and sat through at least five interviews before finally landing a summer position. At the same time, she has been accepted to about a dozen UC and CSU campuses and plans to attend UC Berkeley this fall, a reminder that even high-achieving students are running into a wall when it comes to part-time work.
Statewide Numbers Show How Tough It Is
Analysis cited by the Employment Policies Institute, based on federal data, puts California’s teen jobless rate at nearly 21.6% last summer, the highest in the nation. The research also points to declining labor-force participation among 16-to-19-year-olds and a shrinking pool of traditional entry-level jobs in restaurants and retail, the very positions teens have long counted on.
Why Employers Are Rethinking Who Gets Hired
Jot Condie, president and CEO of the California Restaurant Association, told ABC10 that rising labor costs are reshaping hiring decisions and that “first jobs at restaurants help develop life and work skills.” Condie said employers are weighing higher wages and other expenses as they decide whether to take a chance on younger, less-experienced workers.
How Teens And Parents Are Pivoting
Some students are shifting their search to internships, apprenticeships and municipal programs that offer paychecks along with more structured experience. The Public Policy Institute of California recommends connecting young people to paid internships and clear career pathways as a way to close regional gaps and improve long-term economic prospects…