May 13, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

More than a third of youths combine school and jobs

More than a third of youths ages 14 to 16 who were enrolled in school worked at an employee job (defined as having an on-going relationship with a particular employer) at some point while school was in session during 1996. Even at these young ages, many of these student-workers had a fairly strong attachment to the formal labor market.

[Chart data—TXT]

Most of the students who held employee jobs worked both while school was in session and also during the summer. Fully 28 percent of youths worked both while school was in session and also during the summer, and 8 percent worked only during the school months. Another 6 percent worked only during the summer months.

The youths working both while school was in session and during the summer worked far more extensively than students employed in only the school or summer months. These youths worked 59 percent of the school weeks and 77 percent of the summer weeks. In contrast, youths working only during the school year worked only 23 percent of the school weeks, and those working only during the summer worked just 54 percent of the summer weeks.

Data on the employment experience and other characteristics of youths are a product of the National Longitudinal Surveys program. Additional information is available from "Employment Experience and Other Characteristics of Youths: Results from a New Longitudinal Survey," news release USDL 99-110.