Recession could impact teens' life earnings - Ann Belser, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The bad economy has hurt the youngest generation of workers in a way that could affect their earnings for the rest of their careers, according to a study released Monday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore. In 2011, the teenage employment rate -- the percentage of 16- through 19-year-olds who have jobs -- fell to 26 percent in the U.S., which is a 42 percent decline from 2000. In Pennsylvania, the teen employment rate in 2011 was 39 percent, down from 46 percent in 2000. That puts the state tied for seventh nationally. Even those states where employment among teenagers is the highest have seen a big decline in the percentage of teens who hold jobs, said Laura Speer, one of the authors of the report and the foundation's associate director for policy reform and data. http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/business/news/recession-could-impact-teens-life-earnings-664843/