Youth employment during school: results from two longitudinal surveys; students who worked 20 or fewer hours per week during the school year were more likely to attend college; youths who worked a greater percentage of weeks during the school year worked more consistently when they reached ages 18 to 30

Monthly Labor Review, August, 2001 by Donna S. Rothstein

1. did not work during school weeks at age 16 or 17;

2. worked less than 50 percent of school weeks and averaged 20 or fewer hours of work per week;

3. worked less than 50 percent of school weeks and averaged more than 20 hours of work per week;

4. worked more than 50 percent of school weeks and averaged 20 or fewer hours of work per week;

5. worked more than 50 percent of school weeks and averaged more than 20 hours of work per week. (17)

The analysis that follows explores the association between youths' early work behavior and longer term educational and labor market experiences. (18) The education outcome is whether the individual received some college education by age 30. Detailed work history data are used to create two employment outcome measures: percent of weeks of work from ages 18 through 30 and number of jobs held from ages 18 through 30. (19) Note that this analysis of youth employment and longer term labor market and educational experiences cannot imply causality. Indeed, youths within each of the foregoing five categories may be systematically different from one another even before they begin working. However, the unique longitudinal NLSY79 data can provide valuable insights into the possible relationship between individuals' working while they are young and the outcomes they attain as adults.

Youth employment at ages 16 and 17. Eighty percent of youths worked at ages 16 and 17 at some point while school was in session. (See table 4.) About 41 percent of youths worked more than half of all school weeks. These youths were fairly evenly split between averaging 20 or fewer hours per week and averaging more than 20 hours per week. The same was true of those who worked a relatively low percentage of school weeks (50 percent or less). Note that the work undertaken at ages 16 and 17 for this group born in 1962-64 occurred during 1978-82, a period that included the last 2 years of a business cycle expansion and both the 1980 and 1981-82 recessions.

Male youths were more likely than female youths to have worked during school weeks at ages 16 and 17 (83 percent and 78 percent, respectively). In addition, working male youths were more likely than female youths to average 21 or more hours per week.

White and Hispanic 16- and 17-year-olds were much more likely to have worked during school weeks (85 percent and 74 percent, respectively) than were blacks (59 percent). Hispanics were more likely to work a high average number of hours and a relatively low percentage of weeks, compared with whites and blacks. Whites were more likely to average a high number of hours per week and to work a relatively high percentage of weeks, compared with blacks and Hispanics.

Differences in 16- and 17-year-olds' work behavior while they were in school were also found with respect to family income categories. Youths in families with incomes of less than $25,000 were less likely to work than youths in families in higher income categories. Youths in families with incomes of $70,000 or more were more likely both to average a low number of hours per week and to work a high percentage of school weeks, compared with youths in lower family income categories.