SCHUMER: YOUTH SUMMER JOBS FUNDS WILL HELP LONG ISLAND TEENS AND YOUNG ADULTS FIND WORK DURING CRUSHING ECONOMIC CLIMATE, STIMULATE ECONOMIC ACTIVITY AND EASE STRESS FOR MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES
Program Has Potential To Put Thousands of Young People On Long Island To Work, Helping Struggling Middle-Class Families and Pumping Dollars Into Local Economies
Nearly One in Three 20 to 24 Year Olds Are Neither In School Nor Employed, and Only One In Four Teens 16 to 19 Held Jobs in Late 2009, Hindering Economic Recovery
According to Department of Labor every dollar invested results in 3 dollars of economic activity
Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that $1 billion in summer youth jobs funding is set to pass the Senate this week as part of the Americans Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act. This critical funding will begin to address the incredible rate of unemployment among youth in New York and across the country. The current youth unemployment rate of 21.5% is a threat to our nation's broader economic recovery as an entire generation of young women and men see their talents wasted. Schumer announced that the proposed legislation has the capacity to create as much as 250,000 transitional jobs for America's young people - a demographic that remains plagued by the economic recession. In Long Island, 1,261 youth found employment through a similar program last year. It's estimated upon passage, $3.6 million could go to Long Island for youth summer jobs.
Schumer made the case that transitional employment opportunities coupled with handson training is an effective way to bring America's youth into the workforce, and critical in helping middleclass families that, more than ever before, are financially supporting their grown children. The program will be dedicated to placing youth in jobs and training opportunities that provide valuable work experience, stimulate local economies, and boost the income of middleclass families. The legislation is expected to be voted on this week.
"More than any time in recent memory, summer jobs for teenagers and young adults are going to be tough to come by this summer," said Schumer. "That's why we need to start taking critical steps to immediately address the problem investing in summer jobs programs will not only ensure that kids and young adults have the proper training to join the work force, but will relieve stress on middle class families and is a proven way to jumpstart a local economy."
The Schumerbacked legislation has its roots in the 1998 Workforce Investment Act. The Workforce Investment Act brings together public resources and private industry to create Workforce Investment Boards that act as local hubs for employment. The Workforce Investment Boards each create programs specifically tailored for the region's needs to promote employment for people of all ages. In Long Island there are 3 New York State certified Workforce Investment Boards: the HempsteadCity of Long beach Workforce Investment Board, Oyster BayNorth HempsteadGlen Cove Workforce Investment Board, and the Suffolk County Workforce Investment Board. Schumer said that the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Actfocuses on the unemployed who are 24 years old and younger by creating specific programs to invest in summer and yearround employment for youth.
"Summer jobs are an important part of our workforce. These are the jobs that make the difference in people's quality of life, whether its opening our pools our maintaining our parks." said North Hempstead Supervisor Jon Kaiman. "Senator Schumer understands how jobs like these really make a dissimilarity to the employees and the employers."
Schumer said that such programs have been proven overwhelmingly successful. A similar program included in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act used $1.2B in Recovery Act funding to create 300,000 jobs for unemployed youth nationally. This proposed effort will again target youth between 14 and 24, millions of whom enter the workforce each year in the late spring and early summer as they graduate or as schools close for summer recess.
Schumer said the proposed legislation would send tens of millions to the Workforce Investment Boards in New York, with $3.6 million going to Long Island. An analysis from the New York State Department of Labor suggests the funding could bring $3.6 million in funding to Long Island Workforce Investment Boards. Preliminary estimates suggest that the Suffolk Workforce Investment Board could receive $2.2 million, Oyster BayNorth HempsteadGlen Cove Workforce Investment Board could receive $382,000 and the HempsteadCity of Long Beach Workforce Investment Board could receive $1 million. Schumer said the version of the program funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act supported almost 24,000 youth jobs last year in New York. On Long Island, about 1,261 people found work because of the Summer Jobs Program.
"Summer jobs are an important part of our workforce. These are the jobs that make the difference in people's quality of life, whether its opening our pools our maintaining our parks." said North Hempstead Supervisor Jon Kaiman. "Senator Schumer understands how jobs like these really make a dissimilarity to the employees and the employers."
Youth unemployment - often buried underneath populationwide estimates - has skyrocketed during the recent economic recession. The "disconnection rate" of 20 to 24 year olds who are neither enrolled in school nor employed rose from 17 percent in 2007 to 28 percent last year. Among teenagers, the unemployment rate exceeds what it was for all workers during the Great Depression. The percentage of employed teens, 26 percent in late 2009, is the lowest it has been in more than six decades. Bringing these young adults into the work place will be great for their future but also great for our current economy.
"Putting young people back to work is a proven way to help the economy, and is a goal we should be aggressively pursuing," Schumer added.
