The youth labor force - 16- to 24-year-olds working or actively looking for work - grows sharply between April and July each year. During these months, large numbers of high school and college students search for or take summer jobs, and many graduates enter the labor market to look for or begin permanent employment. This summer, the youth labor force grew by 2.4 million, or 11.5 percent, to a total of 22.9 million in July.
The labor force participation rate for all youth - the proportion of the population 16 to 24 years old working or looking for work - was 60.5 percent in July, the lowest July rate on record. The July 2010 rate was down by 2.5 percentage points from July 2009 and 17.0 percentage points below the peak for that month in 1989 (77.5 percent).
The July labor force participation rate for 16- to 24-year-old men, at 62.7 percent, was down by 2.2 percentage points from a year earlier, and the rate for women, at 58.1 percent, was down by 3.0 percentage points over the year. For several decades prior to 1989, the July labor force participation rate for young men showed no clear trend, ranging from 81 to 86 percent. Since July 1989, however, their participation rate for the month has trended down, falling by about 20 percentage points. The July labor force participation rate for young women peaked in 1989 at 72.4 percent, following a long-term upward trend; their rate has since fallen by about 14 percentage points.
The July participation rate for whites declined by 2.8 percentage points from a year earlier, to 63.2 percent. The rate for blacks, at 51.6 percent, was down slightly, and the rate for Hispanics, at 56.1 percent, decreased by 3.3 percentage points. For all three groups, labor force participation rates were substantially lower than their peaks reached in July 1989. The participation rate for Asian youth was 48.3 percent in July 2010, little changed from July 2009.
Employment
In July, 18.6 million 16- to 24-year-olds were employed. This summer's increase in youth employment was slightly larger than last year's (1.8 million vs.1.6 million) and about the same as in 2008. The employment-population ratio for youth - the proportion of the 16- to 24-year-old civilian noninstitutional population that was employed - was 48.9 percent in July, down 2.5 percentage points from July 2009. The ratio has dropped by about 20 percentage points since its peak in July 1989. July 2010 marks the first time in the history of the series that less than half of all youth 16 to 24 years old were employed in that month. The sharp decline in recent years reflects continued weak labor market conditions experienced during the recession that began in December 2007.
The employment-population ratio for young men was 49.9 percent in July, down from 52.2 percent in July 2009. The employment-population ratios for women (48.0 percent), whites (53.0 percent), and Hispanics (43.6 percent) in July 2010 also were substantially lower than a year earlier.
In July, 25 percent of employed youth worked in the leisure and hospitality sector (which includes food services), the same as a year earlier. Another 20 percent were employed in the retail trade industry, also the same proportion as a year earlier.
Unemployment
In July 2010, 4.4 million youth were unemployed, essentially the same as in July 2009. The youth unemployment rate edged up over the year to 19.1 percent in July 2010, the highest July rate on record for the series, which began in 1948. In recent years, higher youth unemployment reflects the weak job market. Among major demographic groups, the unemployment rates for young men (20.5 percent), blacks (33.4 percent), and Asians (21.6 percent) continued to trend up from a year earlier; the jobless rates for young women (17.5 percent), whites (16.2 percent), and Hispanics (22.1 percent) were virtually unchanged.
