Youth

Axios - Gen Z is reversing a decades-long decline in teen employment. Working for pay can be a key rite of passage for teens as they grow up. But it's not nearly as common as it used to be, Axios' Erica Pandey writes. "There is something lost when there are more young people who enter the workforce after college with no work experience," says Jean Twenge, a psychologist and author of the book "Generations."

By the numbers: In the 1980s, nearly two-thirds of 16- to 19-year-olds were working or actively looking for work.

• That's been steadily falling since then. Teens' labor force participation rate dropped especially low among millennials in the 2000s.
• But Gen Z is starting to bring teen jobs back: The share of teens working or looking for work recently hit a 14-year high — 38%.

 Several factors are driving the uptick in teen employment.

1. Younger workers' wages have been rising faster than those of other age groups.
2. Many teens are getting part-time jobs to help their families cover daily costs as inflation squeezes budgets, says Andrew Challenger of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
3. The demand for labor in jobs teens typically hold — at shops and in restaurants — is still high.

While teen employment is rising, it's unlikely it'll ever get close to the higher rates for Boomers and Gen X-ers, Challenger says.