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Teens often out of luck with finding summer jobs

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Kori Penner is only 16, yet has already begun his lifelong search for a job.

He's just looking for a summer job right now, but is feeling the pressure to start making money. It doesn't help that his 19-year-old sister, Katelyn, started her job at the Bakersfield Swim Club when she was his age.

Then again, the nation wasn't in a recession when Katelyn was 16.

As the weeks until summer wind down, some high school and college students are finding that the search for a summer job isn't as easy as they thought.

"It's not like before, when they applied for jobs they just got them," said Salvador Gochez, counselor for the Kern High School District Regional Occupational Center. "There were a lot of jobs open. Now they don't have that many openings out there."

Renee Ward, founder of Teens4Hire.org, described the situation as a "doomsday forecast," adding that only one out of three 16- to 18-year-olds will find a job this summer. That doesn't include the 14-, 15- and 16-year-olds looking for a summer employment.

It's a similar situation in Kern County, where the unemployment rate soared to 15.9 percent in March, the most recent data available, according to the state's Employment Development Department.

"I'd be surprised if they found anyone hiring," said Linda Turner, manager of the Burger King at 2508 White Lane. "They're just not doing any hiring around here."

Besides fewer jobs, also working against teens is the higher number of adults looking for any way to bring in a steady income.

"The adults being laid-off, they're kind of underemployed," said Kathleen McNeil, district manager of Junior Achievement of Bakersfield. "Everyone's having a harder time."

With adults now in the same job market as youths, employers are expecting all applicants, teenagers included, to have some training and job experience.

"The mindset has to change a little bit," Ward said. So instead of having a traditional job, teenagers may have to find other ways to make money, such as baby-sitting or mowing lawns. They could also do volunteer work to get experience for a later career.

The lucky few who do have jobs, most of which they've had for years, may notice their hours dropping or their pay checks being cut.

Turner said Burger King had to cut back its employees' hours as customers "aren't spending their money like they were a year ago." Turner's four teenage employees have had their jobs for years, and plan to keep them even when they start college in the fall.

Also facing less work this summer are city lifeguards, 98 to 99 percent of who are teenagers, said Lisa Phillips, recreation specialist at McMurtrey Aquatic Center. As part of budget cuts, the city's pools will be open fewer hours than in past years, which means fewer work hours for employees.

For those who don't yet have a job lined up, Ward said it's not time to give up yet.

"I remain the ultimate optimist for the teens that are really self-motivated and have their basic skills," she said. "They just need to be a lot more proactive."

Kristina Bannister, 18, just started her summer job search. She's applied to just about everywhere: fast-food restaurants, retail stores, anywhere that hires teens.

She's had no luck so far.

But she's not giving up just yet. After all, there are still a few weeks left before summer hits.

"I'll do anything," Bannister said. "Any job that I'm able to do, I'll do."

SOURCE: THE BAKERSFIELD CALIFORNIAN |  Friday, May 15 2009