Photo of a teen working as a barista

Teens are working in greater numbers today than they have since 2008.

bymuratdeniz/Getty Images

STANDARDS

Common Core: RH.6-8.1, RH.6-8.2, RH.6-8.4, RH.6-8.7, WHST.6-8.4, RI.6-8.1, RI.6-8.2, RI.6-8.4, RI.6-8.5, RI.6-8.7, W.6-8.4, SL.6-8.1

NCSS: Time, Continuity, and Change • Individual Development and Identity • Power, Authority, and Governance • Production, Distribution, and Consumption

U.S. NEWS

Putting More Teens to Work

With more jobs available than workers, several states are turning to young people to help fix labor shortages. But even if teens want to work more, should they?

Click here to take a Prereading Quiz before you read this article.

As You Read, Think About: What are some pros and cons of teens having jobs?

At the fitness center where he works in Hiawatha, Kansas, Kacer Knudson does whatever is needed to help keep the gym running smoothly. The 17-year-old high school junior sets up new memberships, checks that the exercise equipment is working, and even mops the floor. But his favorite part of the job is interacting with the facility’s members.

“I like being out in front of people trying to make them happy, just talking to them and explaining what the machines do,” Kacer says.

During the school year, Kacer works about 10 hours a week, juggling his job with school and cheerleading practice. But he hopes to pick up more shifts this summer to earn extra spending money and to help his family save for his college tuition.

Across the country, lawmakers are backing new legislation that would allow teens like Kacer to do just that—by loosening some child labor protections at the state level. 

Ohio and other states, for example, have proposed bills that would permit teens—with their parents’ permission—to work later at night, even on school days. In some states, such as Iowa and Minnesota, legislation would allow teens to take jobs in a wider range of industries, including construction.

Some lawmakers say the changes will help businesses in the United States address worker shortages. Since the economy reopened after the Covid-19 pandemic, the country has been experiencing a tight job market. (That’s when there are more jobs available than there are people seeking to fill them.) 

Advocates for relaxing child labor restrictions say the bills are a win-win: Teens would get work experience, while employers would be able to hire them for jobs adults aren’t taking.

But critics worry that loosening the laws could put young people in danger. Plus, they say, working later hours could interfere with teens’ schoolwork.

Existing Protections

About 6 million 16- to 19-year-olds in the U.S. are employed, doing everything from waiting tables to walking dogs. Most work for a few hours after school, on weekends, or during summer vacations.

What kinds of jobs teens can do and for how long is outlined under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), a federal law passed in 1938 to protect all workers—including the youngest. Prior to its passage, many children as young as 12 worked long hours in dangerous conditions (see "Child Labor in the 1900s," below).

The FLSA prohibits most kids under 14 from working and limits teens under 16 to three hours of work on a school day and eight hours on a non-school day. It also bans those under 18 from hazardous jobs, including working in mines. 

There are exceptions, however. When it comes to farmwork, children as young as 12 are allowed to put in unlimited hours as long as they don’t miss school. And for kids working in a family business—where presumably their parents are looking out for them—there’s no minimum age at all.

Under the FLSA, working conditions improved. From 1962 to 1980, an average of 51 percent of young people held jobs.

But starting in the early 2000s, the percentage of employed teens began to drop. According to labor experts, teens started working less as they focused more on getting into college. Meanwhile, increased automation eliminated many entry-level jobs; immigrants filled others.

Enlargeable sepia tone photo of teens working in a factory

GHI/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

These young workers at a Georgia factory in 1909 were so small they had to stand on the machinery.

Child Labor in the 1900s

Child labor was widespread during the Industrial Revolution, a period of rapid manufacturing growth in the U.S. beginning in the late 18th century. During this time, goods were increasingly made using machines rather than by hand. Workers were in high demand to run the machines, but pay was low. Entire families often needed to work to survive.

By the early 1900s, about 2 million children younger than 15 were putting in long hours in hazardous jobs—including coal mines. They labored for up to 12 hours a day, six days a week. 

In response to calls to protect workers, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938. The federal law set rules limiting the hours and jobs teens can work. The FLSA caps the adult workweek at 40 hours and requires that employees of all ages receive at least the federal minimum wage, now $7.25 an hour.

The Pandemic’s Role

Teen employment numbers changed once again during the pandemic, as workers of all ages suffered sharp job losses. At the height of the global crisis in 2020, the number of teens working fell to its lowest levels in decades. But as businesses started reopening the following year, demand surged. Many adults left low-wage jobs for better-paying ones. That left employers scrambling to hire waiters, store clerks, and other service staff. 

“Adult workers said, ‘I no longer want this crazy low-wage service job that has a ludicrous schedule, few benefits, and rude customers,’” Alicia Sasser Modestino, a labor expert who studies the youth workforce, told reporters. So “employers suddenly turned to youth.” 

Today roughly one-third of teens have jobs (see graph, below). That’s the highest rate of young Americans that have worked since 2008, when the Great Recession sent employment plummeting.

SKILL SPOTLIGHT: Analyzing Visual Data

This graph shows the percentage of 16- to 19-year-olds in the U.S. with jobs.

Enlargeable chart showing the percent amount has changed from 2008 through 2022

Note: The shaded areas represent U.S. recessions.

YEAR: 2008 
PERCENTAGE: 32.7

YEAR: 2009 
PERCENTAGE: 28.4

YEAR: 2010 
PERCENTAGE: 25.9

YEAR: 2011
PERCENTAGE: 25.8

YEAR: 2012
PERCENTAGE: 26.0

YEAR: 2013
PERCENTAGE: 26.5

YEAR: 2014
PERCENTAGE: 27.4

YEAR: 2015
PERCENTAGE: 28.5

YEAR: 2016
PERCENTAGE: 29.7

YEAR: 2017
PERCENTAGE: 30.3

YEAR: 2018
PERCENTAGE: 30.6

YEAR: 2019
PERCENTAGE: 30.8

YEAR: 2020
PERCENTAGE: 28.5

YEAR: 2021
PERCENTAGE: 32.0

YEAR: 2022
PERCENTAGE: 32.8

SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

1. About what percentage of U.S. teens had a job in 2020? How does that compare with 2022?

2. During which year shown did the lowest percentage of teens work?

3. How does the line graph support details in the article?

States Look to Teens 

However, businesses are still struggling to hire. In Ohio, many restaurants are short-staffed. That’s why the state put forth a bill this past January that would extend how late teens can work. Under the measure, children as young as 14 could work until 9 p.m. year-round, with their parents’ permission. (Currently, Ohio teens under 16 can work until 7 p.m. on school nights.) South Dakota, Texas, Wyoming, and other states already allow teens to work until 10 p.m. on school nights.

Meanwhile, some states are addressing worker shortages with bills that would allow teens to work in more industries. Earlier this year, Minnesota lawmakers proposed legislation that would permit teens as young as 16 to work in construction. 

Iowa introduced a bill that would allow teens 14 and older to hold certain jobs in meatpacking facilities—including working in meat coolers—as long as they are kept separate from where meat is prepared. And teens 15 and older in the state could perform light tasks on assembly lines in manufacturing plants after obtaining official permission.

Enlargeable photo of two teens walking by a sign that reads, "Join Our Team: apply now"

Steven Senne/AP Images

Employers across the country are trying to fill retail and restaurant positions many adults don’t want.

Jobs Teach Skills

Some experts say there are benefits to increasing work opportunities for young people. For starters, many teens must work in order to help their families make ends meet. Loosening protections would allow them to do that. 

A recent study also found that students with part-time jobs are more likely to earn higher wages in the future compared with classmates who don’t work. Plus, experts add, working teens are likely to spend more, which helps the economy.

In addition, having a job instills responsibility in teens and could even lead to an eventual career, Minnesota State Senator Rich Draheim told reporters. He authored his state’s bill.

“Businesses teach these youth workers skills that will prepare them for their future and maybe even attract them to their industry for life,” he explained.

32.8

Share of teens ages 16 to 19 in the U.S. who had a job in 2022

SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

“Let Kids Be Kids”

But critics of changing the laws worry that doing so could put kids in danger. They say teens working later at night raises safety concerns, such as how they will get home. And, they add, some jobs that lawmakers want to open to teens could put young people at risk of injury or death.

Charlie Wishman, president of the Iowa Federation of Labor, is against his state’s bill that would allow some teens to work in manufacturing and meatpacking facilities. “Child labor should be limited and safe,” he told reporters. “Let kids be kids. There are plenty of job opportunities right now for kids to gain experience and learn responsibility without putting them in danger.”

In addition, some parents and educators worry that if teens devote more time to work, their education will suffer. Research shows that working more than 20 hours a week during the school year can tire young people out and leave less time for studying.

Striking a Balance

While states continue to debate changing their child labor laws, there is one thing that many people agree on: The country’s labor shortage, they say, could be largely solved if more employers offered better pay and benefits to adults.

Still, for teens who want to work, companies are hiring. In fact, experts say there are so many jobs available right now, anyone who wants one should be able to get one.

That’s good news for Kacer’s friends, many of whom will be looking for work this summer.

“As long as kids can balance their schedules, working later hours should be fine,” Kacer says. “But you shouldn’t ever overwork yourself.” 

Words to Know

assembly line: a manufacturing process in which parts are added to a product in a sequence

automation: the use of machines or computers to perform tasks without human workers

benefit: an advantage an employer gives workers in addition to wages, such as health insurance or sick pay 

economy: a system for making, buying, selling, and distributing products and services

federal: relating to the national government

Great Recession: a period of economic decline in the U.S. that lasted from December 2007 to June 2009 

Industrial Revolution: in the U.S., a period of growth starting in the late 1800s as the country shifted from making things by hand to using machines

videos (1)
Video

U.S. News

Teens for Hire

Watch a video about proposed changes to restrictions on when, where, and how teens work.

Skills Sheets (7)
Lesson Plan (1)
Lesson Plan
Lesson Plan: Putting More Teens to Work

A step-by-step guide to teaching this article in your classroom

Leveled Articles (1)
PDF
Leveled Text: Putting More Teens to Work

A lower-Lexile® version of the article in a printer-friendly PDF

Text-to-Speech