A new federal initiative aims to provide paying jobs to up to 100,000 low-income young people this summer, a combined effort of the government and private companies, President Barack Obama said last week.
In the U.S., last summer was a record low for youth employment, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said, with a little less than half of people ages 16 to 24 employed. Among minority youths, only 34.6 percent of African-Americans and 42.9 percent of Hispanics had jobs. A new White House analysis shows that, in 2011, taxpayers spent more than $93 billion to support young adults disconnected from school and work.
