The traditional summer job is undergoing a transformation, and teenagers like Emma Menchaca are part of it.
Menchaca, 14, of Denver works for GreenLeaf, a nonprofit organization that engages youth in agriculture and farming. She earns minimum wage working 20 hours a week in the summer at Sustainability Park in Denver, growing, selecting and selling fruits and vegetables to the public.
She didn’t set out looking for employment.
“I originally came here for volunteer hours for school and something I can put on my college résumé,” she said.
It’s not unusual for students to put other concerns, like community service, ahead of employment. A report released last week by the Pew Research Center points to a steady decline nationwide in what used to be a rite of passage for many teens — the summer job.
Last year, the summer employment rate was 20 percent for 16- and 17-year-olds, less than half the level from 2000, according to the Pew report. For 18- and 19-year-olds, the summer employment rate was 43.9 percent, well below the 62.6 average rate in 2000.
“There are a lot of competing activities for teenagers’ time,” said Alexandra Hall, chief economist for Colorado. “It seems like finding a summer job is not the priority it was 20 or 30 years ago.”
There is no statistical analysis for Colorado’s youth employment rate, said Gary Horvath, a private economist in Broomfield.
But Horvath said he would imagine that youth employment would be higher in Colorado than in other states, “primarily because our unemployment rate is lower (than the nation’s average) and there is more demand for workers in some areas.”
Colorado’s tourism industry is a major job recruiter for youth in the summer, he said.
“Our economy has been stronger, and there are many in-demand jobs particularly in the summer,” Horvath said.
Water World and Elitch Gardens both have youth-focused hiring strategies, and together they employ more than 2,000 seasonal workers.
“We have to turn away half of the students that want to work for us,” said Joann Cortez, spokeswoman for Hyland Hills Park & Recreation District, which operates Water World. “We weren’t happy, but we can only (employ) the number of students for the jobs we have.”
One reason for the decline in summer employment, according to the Pew report, might be that more teens are choosing unpaid internships and community service to meet requirements for graduation and bolster their college applications. In Colorado, the teen volunteer rate has increased more than 10 percentage points from 2009. Last year, it was 37.7 percent, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service.
“These numbers don’t surprise me,” said Samantha Warfield, spokeswoman for the organization. “The millennial generation has a strong impulse toward service.”
The other factors cited in the Pew report for lower summer employment include fewer low-skill, entry-level jobs; more schools restarting before Labor Day; and more students enrolled in classes over the summer.
Vanessa Oldham-Barton, administrator at the Colorado Workforce Center in Broomfield, said she doesn’t think “it’s much of a priority” for teens to have a summer job. The state’s Workforce Centers participate in the Governor’s Summer Job Hunt program, which connects young adults with employers.
Oldham-Barton said they have a hard time filling open positions.
However, teens at the Ethiopian Community Development Council’s African Community Center in Denver have a different outlook. They’re searching for more permanent work.
“They are at a point in their lives where they are interested in working, period,” said Lisa MacClure, job developer at the center.
She said some of her students come from struggling families and want jobs they can work part time during the school year.
According to the Pew report, minority teens are less likely to work a seasonal job than white teens. Last year, the summer employment rate for 16- to 19-year-old white teens was 34 percent, while blacks made up 19.3 percent, Asians were 23 percent, and Latinos made up 25 percent.
For teens who are focused on the whole summer-job package, Sekayi Harris said working at GreenLeaf is the perfect mix.
“This gets you ready for college,” she said. “You are working on so many skills at one time. It’s getting you ready for college better than school would.”
Tierra Smith: 303-954-1046, tsmith@denverpost.com or twitter.com/ByTierraSmith
Staff writer Amy Edelen contributed to this report.
