Youth initiation into the labor market: about half of 12- and 13-year-olds surveyed engage in some sort of work; such work is more likely among youths from higher socio-economic backgrounds or who have engaged in 'delinquent' behaviors

Monthly Labor Review, August, 2001 by Lynn Huang, Michael Pergamit, Jamie Shkolnik

Young people acquire substantial work experience before age 16, the age at which official statistics begin counting employment. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth--1979 cohort (NLSY79), R.T. Michael and N.B. Tuma examined the amount of work performed by 14- and 15-year-olds using definitions from the Current Population Survey (CPS). (1) Importantly, they found significant differences between black and white youths, and also found that youths who worked at ages 14 and 15 were more likely to be working 2 years later. They concluded that social scientists should include such early work experience in their models. Their findings were influential in the design considerations for the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth--1997 cohort (NLSY97).

Other surveys that capture information about youths as young as 12 do not typically include information on their work activities, and data that focus on work have not sampled those below age 14. (2) The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits employment of those younger than age 14, and restricts the hours and jobs allowed for those younger than 16. However, many youths have "jobs" before these ages. These jobs, while not always like those of adults, frequently involve learning work behavior (for example, showing up at a particular time every week), personal responsibility (for example, caring for someone's child), remuneration, and other characteristics that teach young adolescents the basic nature of working for someone else.

The NLSY97 provides a unique opportunity to study the very early work experiences of youths and relate these experiences to future labor market behavior. For 12- and 13-year-olds, information was collected about jobs they had held since age 12.

This article examines exclusively 12- and 13-year-olds, focusing on who holds jobs and the nature of those jobs. Is early initiation into the labor market (age at obtaining first job) associated with youths from upper income, more educated families, or does it occur among those who most likely will not pursue advanced schooling? Does work serve to supplement household income in lower-income, single-parent families? These and related questions are examined in relation to race/ethnicity; parental income, education, and marital status; and the presence of siblings.

Schooling achievement--as measured by the Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) Mathematics score--and time use are compared for youths who have jobs with those who do not. Measuring time use can determine if homework, outside classes, and so forth are substitutes for, or complements to, work. We also observe whether youths in early-age jobs also engaged in or had early initiation into risky behaviors (such as drug and alcohol use, or other delinquency). Finally, we can observe how youths found jobs (that is, did they have help from their parents, other help, or no help at all).

Study methodology

Data for this article are from the first wave of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 Cohort, sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. The survey's main goal is to document the transition from school to work for the U.S. population born during the 1980-84 period. The first wave of the survey includes 9,022 youths aged 12-18 when interviewed. (3)

Work experience. The NLSY97 has a unique set of questions on employment that permits investigation of youth initiation into the labor market. The 12- and 13-year-old respondents were asked about any job experiences since their 12th birthday. This experience could include working for a particular employer (for example, delivering newspapers) or doing tasks for several people--freelance jobs (for example, baby-sitting or mowing lawns). Most jobs reported at these ages were freelance jobs. Respondents aged 14 and older were also asked about their experience in freelance jobs since their 14th birthday. However, information on initial entrance into the labor market is incomplete for those respondents, as freelance jobs that ended before age 14 are not included. For this reason, respondents aged 14 and older were excluded from this study.

Youths were asked first to list the kinds of jobs they have had since their 12th birthday. Then they were asked whether they got help in finding this kind of work; who helped them; when they started doing this kind of work; whether they are currently doing this kind of work, and if not, when was the last time they did. In addition, for the beginning and end of each kind of job, youths were asked the usual number of hours worked per week, the usual amount of money earned per week, and the number of days and hours worked on weekdays and weekends.

A main purpose of this study was to identify youths who work and the number of hours they worked. Therefore, the analysis focuses on two measures of youth employment: A discrete variable measures whether the respondent reported any jobs; a count variable measures the number of hours the respondent worked per week. The information on the number of work hours per week was collected for each kind of work performed--when it was initiated and when it was last (or is currently) performed. However, we do not know the sequential order of jobs performed or whether jobs were (are) performed at the same time. Given this, we use the hours when jobs were last (or are currently) performed, and among those, we use the hours per week on the job with most hours. (4)