Minimum wage of $ 15 an hour could lead to new jobs for teens

Raising the federal minimum wage to $ 15 an hour would make it harder for many teens to get or keep jobs, adding to the employment challenges they faced during the pandemic, many economists say.

Democrats want to increase the federal minimum wage in stages to that level by 2025, by $ 7.25 an hour. Most states have already set a higher minimum wage. The plan would also eliminate a sub-minimum wage for young people that would allow companies to pay teenagers less for the first 90 days on the job.

The changes would give increases to millions of workers and lift some out of poverty, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said in studies. But he also revealed that around 1.4 million workers would lose their jobs over the next four years, many of whom were teenagers. “Young people and the less educated would represent a disproportionate share of these cuts,” he said in a February report on the minimum wage proposal.

Teens experienced much higher unemployment rates than the general workforce during the pandemic. The unemployment rate for people aged 16 to 19 hit nearly 32% in April 2020, more than double a pandemic peak for an overall unemployment rate of 14.8%. Both rates eased, but teenage unemployment remained strong at 13.9% in February, compared to an overall unemployment rate of 6.2%.

Lauren Gimple, 17, worked at a bakery in Powell, Ohio, earning near minimum wage until the pandemic struck. The Ohio pay floor is $ 8.80 an hour. She said she quit her job because some of her family had weakened immune systems, a risk factor for developing severe Covid-19, but intended to return when her family is vaccinated .