The Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget recently released its summer teen employment forecast for 2018.

As in recent years, the department is predicting a competitive labor market for teens ages 16 to 19 seeking summer work. Teens face competition from peers who have prior work experience, college students and unemployed/underemployed older adults working jobs that may have been held by teens in the past.

According to the forecast, “Starting in May, the number of teens entering the labor force increases sharply and reaches a peak in July and August. It’s predicted that this year’s teen jobless rate will be around 19 percent.”

Here’s a look at two programs providing employment to Michigan teens this summer: 

• Grow Detroit’s Young Talent (GDYT) is a program that offers training and employment to 8,000 youth from the City of Detroit for six weeks in the summer. This year GDYT has incorporated mandatory evaluations and robust data management to track its success. Several CMF members support the GDYP program, including: The Skillman Foundation, DTE Energy Foundation, Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation, the Marjorie S. Fisher Fund of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, the Vera and Joseph Dresner Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Bank of America.
• Summer Youth Nonprofit Work Experience places youth in nonprofit organizations in West Michigan to work 32 hours a week for six weeks in the summer. This program is funded by the DTE Energy Foundation through the United Way of the Lakeshore in partnership with the Michigan Works! Association.

The benefits of summertime youth employment extend well beyond a paycheck. A summer job provides an opportunity for teens to gain valuable life skills and work experience toward building a resume. It allows teens to establish and grow a network with new connections who can serve as future references. Summer jobs also allow teens to explore industries and the opportunity to identify a potential career path. Apprenticeships offer another option for older teens and young adults ready for careers.

Recent research from a state-commissioned study shows that most Michigan students and parents are not familiar with the benefits of apprenticeships or the breadth of opportunities.

Study highlights:

• Students ages 14-30 are significantly more knowledgeable about the options of community colleges and four-year universities than apprenticeships.
• More than half of parents say they are not knowledgeable about apprenticeship benefits.
• Only 21 percent of parents view an apprenticeship as a good option for their student following high school.
• About 80 percent of high schoolers say their parents are the most influential people regarding career/job choices, with teachers and friends a distant second and third, respectively.
• Students in Southeast Michigan and West Michigan are similar in their knowledge of the potential benefits of apprenticeships at 44 percent, while other regions of the state are highly variable, ranging from 56 percent in Greater Lansing/Jackson to 35 percent in the Great Lakes Bay Region that includes Bay, Saginaw and Midland counties as well as the Thumb Region that includes Huron, Sanilac and Tuscola counties.

Leaders are using this data to launch a campaign to raise awareness about the variety of options for apprenticeship and the benefits. Campaign organizers report that “Through 2024, Michigan will have more than 800,000 good-paying career openings accessible through apprenticeships in fields including information technology, health care and manufacturing.”

The Governor’s Office of Foundation Liaison and Jackson Community Foundation recently hosted a site visit at the Jackson Area Career Center for CMF members and state partners to learn about a successful skills-based education program, the Jackson Area College and Career Connection Early/Middle College Program. Funded through local public and private partnerships, JAC3=E/MC is designed to prepare students for future full-time employment with Jackson-area businesses. Read about members' site visit in a special CMF news story.

Want more?

Access Michigan’s Summer 2018 Job Market Forecast for Teens.

Learn more about Grow Detroit’s Young Talent and the Summer Youth Nonprofit Work Experience.

Check out the research findings related to apprenticeships in Michigan.

Visit Advance Michigan Center for Apprenticeship Innovation.