Congrats to all of the Oregon teens graduating from High School this week! You all deserve a round of applause for earning your diploma! Unfortunately, you and your underclassmen friends may be facing one of the toughest summer job markets experienced in Oregon in some time - at least for younger people. Not only has the current recession sharply reduced the number of summer work opportunities, any job that does become available is being flooded with applications from older, more experienced workers.
Fortunately for you, our very own Brooke Jackson-Winegardner recently wrote an article detailing the work trends of Oregon's teens. The information she provides may help you narrow your search for a job this summer, and improve your odds of landing a job.
There were 56,700 working Oregonian teens in 2008 and one in three worked in the food services sector. Leisure and hospitality and retail trade were the two industries that hired the most young workers. Both industries pay lower-than-average wages, especially to entry-level workers, meaning that many teens work for minimum wage or slightly higher.
Teen employment is slightly seasonal, peaking in the spring as well as the winter holiday season. Important note: there are more jobs for teens in leisure and hospitality during the summer months and retail trade during the winter months.
While there are no major differences between Oregon's urban and rural teens (as far as employment goes), there are some differences in employment between guys and gals. First of all, most young workers are female - and these young ladies might find more opportunities in the leisure and hospitality industry compared to their male counterparts. Industries where young men account for more than half of the teen workers include construction and manufacturing - both of which have taken the brunt of the recession's job losses.
Guys, I hope you were nice to your sisters during the school year - they might be taking you out for ice cream this summer.
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