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No End in Sight

The economy has hit young Americans hard over the past five years. While the national unemployment rate is 8.2 percent, the unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds more than doubles to 16.5 percent. For Latino youth, that figure jumps to 20.5 percent, and for African Americans, it skyrockets to 30.2 percent – almost four times the national average.

However, even these startling statistics understate the problem. Not only are youth struggling to find jobs, but dismal prospects have also driven many of them from the labor force entirely. The standard unemployment rate does not count those who have given up any hope of finding work. At the moment, fewer than half of 16- to 24-year-old Americans hold any kind of job at all; fewer young people were working during the recession than at any time since our nation started tracking unemployment data. Given the current economic malaise, Young Invincibles decided to explore what the youth job market might look like over the next decade. What comes next for America’s youth? Click here to read more.