MarketWatch by Dow Jones
Experts blame last year’s record low teen employment rate on the decreased benefits of having a job. The low labor-force participation rate for 16- to 19-year-olds – dropping incrementally from nearly 60 percent in 1979 to just over 41 percent last year – has often been blamed on an influx of adults willing to work for low wages. But in a time of skyrocketing tuition costs and the highly competitive college application process, many teens believe that investing time and energy on school work and extracurricular activities is more important than part-time earnings. Jan. 6, www.marketwatch.com.
