Hiring for teens took off in June as companies employed 1,023,000 workers aged 16 to 19, the most since 2007, following a below-average May, according to the latest analysis by Chicago-based global outplacement and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
The June job spike is 48% higher than the same month last year, when nearly 700,000 jobs were added. It is the highest June total since 2007, when 1,114,000 jobs were gained among teens.
“June typically averages the most job gains of the summer months, with well over 700,000 jobs added on average since 2006, but these are some of the strongest numbers we’ve seen since the recovery,” said John A. Challenger, Chief Executive Officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.
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Employment among 16- to 19-year-olds was revised down in May to just 75,000, about 52% lower than the 156,000 job gains in May 2016. The May 2017 total was the lowest summer-month total since May 2011, when just 71,000 job gains were recorded. Challenger’s analysis is based on non-seasonally adjusted data released earlier this month by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Challenger Gray said if July numbers maintain an average pace of over 400,000 jobs added, this could be the highest year for teen summer employment since 2007, just before the recession.
“While May gains were lower than average this year, June’s more than offset that pace. It seems the recent decline of brick-and-mortar retail locations has not subdued hiring among teens,” said Challenger.
June’s teen participation rate also ticked up to 42.4%, the highest monthly rate since 2009, when 45.9% of teens were employed. Even so, the current rates are far below the more than 50% of teens who held jobs in the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
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