Millennial Jobs Report: Youth Unemployment at 12.5 Percent in March

Opportunities remain scarce for young people after years of debt-fueled government spending

Washington, DC – (3/8/13) – Generation Opportunity, a national, non-partisan organization advocating for Millennials ages 18-29, is announcing its Millennial Jobs Report for February 2013. The data is non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) and is specific to 18-29 year olds:

• The youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year olds specifically for February 2013 is 12.5 percent (NSA).

• The youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year old African-Americans for February 2013 is 22.8 percent (NSA); the youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year old Hispanics for February 2013 is 13.4 percent (NSA); and the youth unemployment rate for 18–29 year old women for February 2013 is 11.5 percent (NSA).

• The declining labor force participation rate has created an additional 1.7 million young adults that are not counted as “unemployed” by the U.S. Department of Labor because they are not in the labor force, meaning that those young people have given up looking for work due to the lack of jobs.

• If the labor force participation rate were factored into the 18-29 youth unemployment calculation, the actual 18-29-unemployment rate would rise to 16.2 percent (NSA).

“In 2008, the national debt was $10 trillion, and youth unemployment was spiraling out of control. Five years later, our national debt has nearly doubled to close to $17 trillion, and young people have even less economic opportunity. Perhaps it’s time to admit that government is the problem, not the solution,” said Evan Feinberg, President of Generation Opportunity and one of the first Millennials to run for Congress. “Young people agree: 72 percent believe we should reduce government spending to create economic opportunities. After four years of debt-fueled government spending, far too many young people – nearly one in six – are still out of the game. This is unacceptable – my generation won’t put up with it for much longer.”

Follow us on Twitter: @GenOpportunity

# # #