From going out and eating with friends to planning for the future and saving money for a place to live or college, teenagers want to have a source of income, which could be from their parents or a job of their own. But what about the people who can’t rely on either of those? Almost everything has a cost, and it’s hard for some people because they might want to go do things with their friends, but don’t have the money, or they graduate high school and try to find an affordable education. However, they need to take out massive loans to be able to afford tuition. So, what should students do to find the money they need?
Most teenagers work in the food industry or retail because most of those businesses hire kids starting at 14-16, but it can be really difficult to get a job because they don’t need new employees. During the holidays, businesses always hire new workers to keep up with demand, and then they get laid off or all positions at those jobs are full and they can’t hire anyone else. According to KCRG, “More Iowans started looking for a job in December, driving the state’s unemployment rate higher.” Taylor Theriault, junior, has been searching for a new job for over two months. She’s applied to a plethora of places from Texas Road House to T.J. Maxx but can’t find a place that is hiring multiple people. She said, “After the holidays, no one is really hiring, especially since they just got rid of all the seasonal people, and they are set on the people they have.” Some students need jobs, but there are no options this early into the year. Being so young and having this difficult situation to deal with can be so stressful.
Unemployment is a serious problem in the United States and so many people already have such a hard time with not being able to work. Every year, more and more people need jobs, and sure, there are some new vacancies every once in a while, but it doesn’t compare to the number of people searching. “Iowa Workforce Development reported the state’s unemployment rate in December hit 3.2%, an increase from 3.1% in November and 3.0% a year ago. At the same time, Iowa’s employers added 4,000 jobs in December. The number of jobs statewide is up 7,400 from a year ago. The Government sector saw the biggest jump in hiring in December, adding 1,700 jobs,” according to KCRG. So why is it so hard when there are constantly new job openings? Most of those jobs are for college students or graduates, and one would need to have certain requirements to even be considered. How can people gain experience with the opportunity? And how are people going to get the money to go through college if they can’t find a simple job to work at?
Money is so important and is always needed, so people need to work for it, but it’s so difficult, especially now. Theriault said, “Before the holidays or during the summers are the best times to find jobs; that’s when everyone is hiring.” So people just have to wait until the right time even though it might be urgent. They can always do other kinds of work like landscaping or babysitting. There are always options; they just aren’t always reliable. However, it’s better than having no source of income at all.
