For a job these days, Jose Marrero, 19, of the Westside of Syracuse, is considering the Navy.
“I’ve always wanted to travel the world,” he said. “I just have to go.”
Marrero is one of thousands of young people considered as “actively seeking employment” under the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ definition of unemployment.
As the nation struggles with economic recession, young people like Marrero are among those hardest hit by the sagging job market, say experts. They are often the first to be laid off when an employer hits hard times. Many young people lack the work history, skills and experience to get higher-paying jobs. And most are in the jobs — fast food and services — most vulnerable to recession.
In early December, the overall unemployment rate dropped to 8.6 percent, according to the federal government. That’s far lower than the rate typically for young people. From the 2010 Census, some statistics on unemployment among the young:
- Nationally, the unemployment rate among those 16 to 19 years old, is at 29.7 percent. Among those 20 to 24 years old, that number is 16.9 percent.
- New York state figures put the numbers for those 16 to 19 years old at 28.1 percent with 312,385 in that age group. And 20 to 24 year olds are at 17.1 percent with 241,834 that age.
- In Onondaga County, the unemployment rate among those 16 to 19 years old is slightly lower at 21 percent or an estimated 6,442 workers. Among those 20 to 24 years old, that number is 13.5 percent or 4,741 workers.
- In the city of Syracuse, the unemployment rate more closely mirrored the national figures. For those 16 to 19 years old, the city’s unemployment rate is at 27.3 percent unemployment or 4,294 workers. Among those 20 to 24 years old, that number is 14.7 percent or 2,793 workers.
Unemployed youth face an uncertain future, say experts. When their typical jobs in fast food and supermarkets evaporate, it can be difficult for the young worker to bounce back. Some have options at their disposal, like taking extra training or military service. But not all of them will pan out.
“Frustrating” is how Don Dutkowsky, an economics professor at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, describes the plight of young workers.
“Things like supermarkets, fast food places, department stores, these types of businesses get slower,” he said. “As their profit margins get squeezed, they lay off people.”
In Syracuse, various programs work to help unemployed youth train themselves for work. One initiative is the 12-week Green Train Program. It was started in 2009 by the Northside Urban Partnership, nicknamed Northside UP. The program focuses on training construction workers, supplying its graduates with three separate state certifications, said Dan Sheppard, Northside UP’s workforce development program coordinator.
Syracuse construction companies like Zero Draft, Henderson-Johnson and Tag Mechanical have hired some of the program’s graduates.
For each 12-week session, the program only takes 15 applicants. Although 80 applied in the last cycle, Sheppard said, the program needs to be selective. “When we graduate folks, they really need to be job-ready,” he said. “If we send someone to an employer and they’re really good, the employer will come back to us.”
But the Green Train program is limited to those interested in construction and won’t work for others, said Sheppard. Often, younger people who graduate from the program do not succeed in the job hunt, Sheppard said. “At a younger age, they still feel they have all their nine lives left,” he said. “They’re not ready to sacrifice what it requires to work at a construction site.”
In one effort to tackle youth unemployment, Sen. Kristen Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has introduced a measure aimed at training unemployed youth in urban areas. Gillibrand has been joined by seven co-sponsors on the proposed Urban Jobs Act of 2011. The bill is awaiting action by Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. It would authorize the Secretary of Labor to give grants to nonprofit community organizations to help train, support, and provide services for eligible urban youth.
The bill defines “eligible urban youth” as individuals age 18 to 24 who are not enrolled in secondary school or post-secondary school and who do not have criminal records. It calls for the Labor Secretary to create a National Jobs Council Advisory Committee with local affiliate committees to gather community support. At least one-third of the members in each of these local committees must be be employers in high-growth industries.
Gillibrand announced the proposal at the Syracuse Housing Authority in May. “Supporting education and training for our youth is a smart investment that will help rebuild our local economy and pay dividends over the long term,” said Gillibrand in a press release.
Today, 19-year-old Marrero sees the Navy as his surest career bet. Like his friends before him, he has spoken with recruiters, taken the entrance exams, and has been exercising. Marrero has had the time to prepare: he has been unemployed for more than six months. He was last fired from a job at the Burger King on West Genesee Street.
The Navy, he said, he hopes will be a way out of the Westside and out of his mother’s house.
“I’m trying to be independent,” he said. “I’m trying to turn my life around.”
(Eric Vilas-Boas is a senior with dual majors in magazine journalism and English and textual studies.)
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