Teens begin Searching for Summer Jobs in New York State

Tiana Cordero attends Rockland Community College and has a goal of working in the auto industry after she graduates. She just isn’t sure if she will find a job.

“I feel that it takes a lot of time and you really have to have the patience to sit and look at Jobnet almost every other day,” said Cordero, who is from New York. “What I’m looking for is so specific.”

In March, the unemployment rate for teens between the ages of 16 and 19 was at 25 percent, an increase of 24.5 percent in March of 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate for the Lower Hudson Valley jumped to 7.4 percent in February compared to 7.2 percent in February of 2011. The unemployment rate for New York State was at 9.2 percent in February.

A 20-week T.E.E.N. Works program began on April 16 in Rockland County and it pays 43 teens and young adults ages 14 to 21 four stipends of $125 so that they will attend classes about self-sufficiency and then place them in jobs during the15th week of the program. At the Teen Employment and Academic Mentoring program at Rockland Community College summer camps, there are 25 positions for workers between the ages of 17 and 21 that will work for seven weeks at $7.25 per hour.

There are quite a few internships available in the county for teens between the ages of 17 and 24 and those interested can contact the Westchester Putnam One-Stop Employment Center for information. The Westchester deputy county executive, Kevin Plunkett, said that the portal for the internships is not yet active but once it is it will help young people find jobs at home after returning from college.

“We need to address the reasons why my five children find it difficult to come back to Westchester,” Plunkett said.

Those trying to help teens find jobs this summer have mixed thoughts on how the summer economy will be for jobs.

“It’s absolutely better,” said Irene Deutsch, director of Rockland County Community College’s Career Services Center. “When students hear there is a better job market, they become more eager to join the job search process and their enthusiasm in the job process helps them find employment.”

The youth employment supervisor at White Plains Youth Bureau, Patti Staffiero, said that there are more teens applying for jobs than there are available positions.

“I’m hoping with the help of the business council and one-stop we can engage more private-sector companies to post positions with us,” Staffiero said.