2010 grads & jobs

"For the class of 2010, it will be one of the worst years to graduate high school or college since at least 1983 and possibly the worst since the end of World War II," according to a recent paper from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

Its main findings:

• The class of 2010 will be entering a labor market with the highest rates of unemployment in at least a generation; unemployment rates for both college graduates and non-graduates younger than 25 are nearly double their pre-recession levels.
• Since the start of the recession, the youth labor force (workers age 16 to 24) has contracted by 1.1 million workers.
• Since the start of the recession, an additional 1.2 million 16-24-year-olds have become disconnected from both formal schooling and work.
• Most young adults that come across hard economic times will fall through the large gaps in the public safety net.
• Contrary to arguments that higher federal budget deficits burden future generations, rising public debt that finances efforts to boost economic recovery will minimize the deep economic scarring caused by the recession and increase future earnings for young workers.

THE CLASS OF 2010, Economic Prospects for Young Adults in the Recession (pdf, 14pp/256kB), May 11, 2010