10,000 Youth Summer Jobs Campaign releases survey results

Survey Results include:

• 64% of youth said a job would enable them to support their family with urgent needs like food, rent, and transportation and reduce their dependence on parents 

• 75% of youth said a meaningful job must align with their passions, values, or sense of purpose — including opportunities to give back to their communities

• 74%of youth cited structural, systemic, or logistical barriers — including transportation, inaccessible job locations, and competing responsibilities like school or caregiving

• 77% of youth reported that a lack of qualifications, prior experience, or training held them back from accessing opportunities

• 60% of youth said their actual or perceived identity (race, age, language, gender, disability) created barriers to employment — making discrimination the most cited challenge.

Challenges and Barriers to Employment include:

• Identity-based barriers to employment

• Experience and skills gaps: breaking the catch-22

• Structural & systemic barriers: when access is out of reach

Recommendations include:

• Center equity and inclusion in design and delivery

• Establish a mayor’s youth employment council

• Scale boldly and sustainably

• Make the program accessible and visible

• Create future-focused and skills-rich roles

• Invest in wraparound supports and mentorship

• Tie the program to civic impact