Obtaining summer employment in Chelsea has become exceptionally difficult. What once served as a common experience for young people—whether flipping burgers at a fast-food restaurant or participating in city cleanup initiatives—represented an important transition into adulthood, offering paychecks and workplace experience. Today, landing a summer job in Chelsea proves nearly impossible. Youth summer employment has plummeted to historic lows both nationwide and across Massachusetts, and local organizers describe Chelsea’s circumstances as a crisis, with hundreds of teenagers unable to find work or activities for the season.
According to Roseanne Bongiovanni of the Chelsea Collaborative, which administers Chelsea’s Summer Youth Employment Initiative, the program has undergone substantial reductions. “It definitely is a serious concern,” she said. The initiative has nearly halved its hiring, dropping from approximately 300 young workers employed for eight weeks to 175 workers for six weeks. “Due to the economic crisis, funds have been cut severely. Because of that we were only able to hire 175 kids for six weeks this year. We had more than 700 applications from young people looking for jobs. Our previous high was about 600 applications.”
Chelsea’s predicament mirrors that of most communities nationwide. Neighboring Everett faces comparable challenges, though industrial waterfront companies there typically provide substantial donations that support their summer jobs program and help prevent such crises. Revere experienced equally severe cuts to its youth employment program, prompting its City Council to approve a $50,000 budget appropriation from the regular tax levy—a first for that municipality. Chelsea, by contrast, remains in uncertain circumstances.
Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics data reveals that youth unemployment has reached its highest level since World War II. In May, when youth hiring typically accelerates, the national youth unemployment rate stood at 25 percent. Among all teenagers nationwide, only 25 percent are expected to secure summer employment this year, compared to roughly 50 percent in 2001. BLS officials note that teen unemployment, particularly during summer months, represents an all-time high since record-keeping began in the 1940s.
Joe McLaughlin, a senior research associate at Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market Studies, projects that merely one in four teenagers will find summer work. “In the past few summers we’ve been forecasting pretty generously and the real number has ended up actually being lower than our forecast,” he told the Record. “We do feel the summer of 2011 will set another post-World War II low point for teen summer employment. We’ve forecast that 27 percent will find a job.” According to McLaughlin, this trend disproportionately affects low-income and urban areas like Chelsea, and proves significantly more severe in Massachusetts than elsewhere in New England.
A report from McLaughlin’s Center issued last April demonstrates that Massachusetts ranked last among New England states for teen employment in 2010—substantially behind all others. Massachusetts achieved only 29 percent teen employment that year, meaning nearly 70 percent remained unemployed. Connecticut followed with 32 percent, Rhode Island with 34 percent, and Vermont led with 43 percent. This represents a dramatic decline from 1999, when Massachusetts recorded 54 percent teen employment.
Bongiovanni characterizes Chelsea’s situation as resulting from two converging crises. The private sector no longer hires young people in previous volumes, and government programs—the remaining employment option—face ongoing budget cuts. “What we found is that many of the youths we turned away in the past, we would tell them to go and try applying at Market Basket or Stop & Shop or one of the fast food locations,” she said. “But over the past two years we haven’t been able to say that because we found their parents or other adult relatives are now being hired by Market Basket and other jobs like that. Because of the economic downturn, parents or older folks are taking jobs that used to go exclusively to youths for summer time employment. We find that if young people aren’t getting a job with the City or through us, then there just isn’t a job out there for them. Of course, that is very serious because that’s when they tend to engage in the risky behaviors we try to prevent.”
Nationwide debate continues regarding the causes of teen employment decline. According to the Center for Labor Market Studies report, typical private-sector teen jobs have eroded over the past decade. Experts cite several factors: increased competition from low-skilled adult workers willing to accept lower wages and longer commitments, particularly in landscaping and retail positions; growing numbers of retirees working part-time jobs to supplement retirement income, taking positions like grocery bagging that previously went to teenagers; and arguments that minimum wage increases have reduced employers’ willingness to hire short-term summer workers due to increased financial obligations.
McLaughlin identifies a more fundamental cause: fewer jobs exist while more people seek them. “The main reason certainly is because of fewer jobs,” he said. “For the remaining jobs that are out there, there is tremendous competition. What we often see is that the slightly older kids – say 20 to 24 – are holding onto these entry-level jobs as they finish college or try to enter the workforce. They are often coming back to the jobs they had when they were 17…Teens cannot compete with them. The older kids are a little more reliable, more flexible, already trained and they work for the same amount of money.” The Center for Labor Market Studies, along with Chelsea organizers, characterizes this situation as a potential crisis. “Those kids that don’t get a job tend to end up not doing much,” he said. “A lot of times that leads to risky behaviors – especially for the low-income groups and for boys…What’s unfortunate is kids are having too much free time and they’re not building important work skills that they’ll need when they leave school or college. Economists may say it’s not that important to have that first job flipping burgers, but we kind of think it is important. The only way to know how to work is to get out there and work.”
Bongiovanni concurs that many Chelsea teenagers face idle summers, a circumstance that could lead to serious consequences. “There are hundreds of kids out there this year that don’t have summer jobs and they want them,” she said. “We’re piecemealing pennies here to make this work. If folks want to contribute, it’s not too late. If a business, foundation or company wants to supply hiring a youth, they should contact us now.”
To contact Bongiovanni or the Collaborative, call (617) 889-6080 x111.