By Frank X. Moraga
AmigosNAZ
Classes on filling out job applications, interview techniques prepare youth for competitive summer job season
It looked like a typical classroom with adult speakers talking in front of a group of teens.
But then it got real. The teens were, in fact, would-be job hunters and soon spread out across the room to sit in front of a panel of job interviewers or to meet one-to-one with a potential employer.
While the students that day were just pretending to be job-hunters, and community members were volunteering to play the role of interviewers, the class at the East Flagstaff Library had a serious purpose — to prepare these young people for the difficult task of finding a summer job in Northern Arizona.
The job-hunting season is well under way with the month of May a crucial time for teens to get those last available jobs for the summer season.
Teens face a tough summer job market with businesses hiring fewer employees and older displaced workers competing for low-wage jobs as the nation continues to recover from the aftermath of the Great Recession.
“It is still really tough,” said Ann Tatham, workforce development specialist at the Coconino County Career Center.
“In Flagstaff they also compete with college students who want to stay in town during the summer and they are still competing with back-to-work adults who have retired. They have been putting in applications and say they are not hearing any call-backs.”
Statistics show how tough the job market really is for young people…
Featured Photo: Ann Tatham, center, workforce development specialist at the Coconino County Career Center, provides young people with tips they need for a successful summer job search during a “Youth Employment Prep Workshop Series” class
Finish reading Arizona teens get ready for tough job market
