Teens have tough time finding jobs

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - A government study found employment for 16- to 19-year-olds dropping to the lowest level since World War II. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics , seven out of ten teenagers looking for summer work won't get it.

It mostly blames older workers, immigrants and college grads who can't find a job for filling the positions usually taken by teenagers.

"We have some people who are seasoned engineers who are willing to take temporary jobs," Crystal Ashby, a branch manager for Elwood Staffing, said.

Wednesday, more than 800 people attended a job fair at IPFW put on by the university and Rep. Marlin Stutzman. The congressman wasn't surprised by the study and said government regulations are also to blame.

"Whether it's minimum wage or regulations of hiring, small businesses would like to hire and see it as an opportunity to help a young person get into the workforce, but first of all, can't afford it, and the hassle of regulations are too much. Get government out of the way," Stutzman said.

Josh Blevins, 18, just graduated from Bishop Dwenger High School and is feeling the tough times.

"The economy is down and everybody's looking," Blevins said.

He's hoping to get a part-time job so he can help pay for college. He'll start at IPFW in the fall. He's already applied at dozens of places.

"It's tough, but you've got to keep trying because you know so many people are fighting for the same thing you are," he said.

Brenton Barnes, 17, is in a similar boat. He'll graduate from high school this December. 

"I'm looking for a job that interests me and what I want to do," Barnes said. "It's kind of hard because you're young and all the other people have more experience than you. You're still in high school and don't have a degree or anything."

The City of Fort Wayne hires part-time summer help. Most of those jobs are filled with college students, high school students and teachers off for the summer. The 400 jobs were posted in January and were filled by the end of April. 

Kelly Parrett, the human relations generalist for the city, wasn't sure how many of the hires were high school teens.

But, Blevins and Barnes aren't giving up.

"Making my own money and doing what I like to do will keep me motivated to keep looking and not give up hope," Barnes said.