Drought in the Summer Job Market

    We’ve all seen it before; flocks of high school and college students seeking summer jobs at supermarkets, fast food joints, amusment parks and the like as soon as school lets out. But this summer, the job market is a little different. Not only is the economy floundering, but these young job hunters have some new competition, making it harder than ever for students to get some work experience. 

  Of course the obvious culprit is the struggling economy. The financial year has been tough, and many small businesses have had to close down, taking potential jobs down with them. Even large companies have not fared well, many supermarkets has had to cut back and cut jobs while some, like Circut City, had to close down altogether, taking thousands of jobs across the country with it.

  However, the new menence on the scene is stiff competition for jobs from people decades their senior: the baby boomers. That’s right, as the economy slows down, many people have been laid off or has had to take on second jobs at the places students have traditionally sought work. Some have even had to come out of retirement to make ends meet. Most employers would rather hire overqualified adults who are more responsible than rowdy inexperienced students.

  The situation is tougher for those students looking for their first jobs. With no prior experience and no long term commitment, there is little hope of getting hired.  The employers would much rather hire someone who is going to be around a while rather than waste resources in this economically challenging time to train someone who’s going to be gone in the fall. Thus, these poor unfortunate students get trapped in a vicous cycle: no work experience, hence no job, hence no work experience et al.

  However, all is not lost, there are still some jobs that hold promise for high school and college students this summer. There are serveral options to consider. One of the advantages that students have is time flexibiltiy; students are free the whole summer so if one is willing to work any time, any day of the week, employers may be tempted. Another possiblity is finding a job that deals with technology. If there’s one thing this generation is good at, it is technology, after all, they grew up with it. Look for jobs in the IT department: tech support, web design etc, do things the competition can’t do. Then, there’s always seasonal work. Jobs at pools or amusement parks are only avaliable only in the summer, and doesn’t typically attract the older folks now flooding the job market because it isn’t permanent. And last but not least, build the resume! Consider taking a less desireable job or volunteer; make yourself more attractive to employers so you will get hired in the future. Part of this can be taking classes or acquiring new skillsets so you will have more oppertunities later.