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Area agencies help job-seeking teemsTRI-COUNY AREA—Teens looking for a summer job may find it harder than they thought. After scouring the area looking for working teens, results came up limited. “More than any time in recent memory, summer jobs for teenagers and young adults are going to be tough to come by this summer,” according to a press release sent out by Sen. Charles Schumer May 20.The press release also stated that only one in four teens, ages 16 to 19 and only one in three 20- to 24-year-olds held jobs in late 2009. The current youth unemployment rate is 21.5 percent. Bobby Sprauge, Dundee Central High School senior, is currently looking for a summer job. “The job search has been horrible. I have put in applications for tons of different places and no interviews yet,” he said. Many people don’t realize that area agencies like county youth bureaus and county workforce offices actually have programs to help teens and youth find summer jobs. Yates Workforce Development has created a Facebook page titled Workforce Youth Program Yates that offers assistance for teens. The page posts new jobs in the county each week, offers helpful tips for job seekers, gives helpful Web sites to look at, and even offers help for kids under 15 looking for a job. “It is a great resource for all different age levels,” Loree Martin, youth coordinator for Yates County Workforce Development said. Martin will also hold two open-houses for job seeking teens Monday, June 7 from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the Dundee Library and Monday, June 14 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Yates Workforce office at 417 Liberty St. in Penn Yan. Youth and/or parents are invited to stop in at any time. The workshop will offer advice to teens for looking for jobs, including how to look for a job, helpful Web sites to locate jobs, application tips, and interview questions. For more, call 315-536-5140. Finger Lakes Works has an internship program for college students in an undergrad degree program, high school students or those enrolled at technical institutions. Students have to be 16 to 24 years old and have a grade point average (GPA) of at least 75 percent or higher. For more or for an application visit: www.fingerlakesinternship.com ProAction of Yates and Steuben, Inc. has a few programs to assist eligible youth with getting a job. Youth Employment Services (YES), provides youth with pre-employment skills training and then places them in an actual local job. A Partnership for Youth (APY): for Steuben County, assists youth with employment opportunities. The youth employment specialist at ProAction also helps all youth ages 14 to 21 with resume preparation, filling out applications, job searching and service referral. For more call the Yates office at 315-536-5516 or the Steuben office at 607-776-2125. The Schuyler County Youth Bureau currently has a summer youth employment program with Watkins Glen International. According to Adam Lawton of the Schuyler County Youth Court, they have seen a large amount of interest in the program. They began taking applications May 3 and that first day they received almost 30 applications. Anywhere from 30 to 35 youth, ages 14 to 21, are hired for the program to clean up during and after major events held at the raceway. Applications are accepted through August. For more call 607-535-6236. The Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben County Workforce will help 16- to 21-year-olds find local jobs with no specific skills needed. Youth counselors have offices in Bath at 117 East Steuben St. and in Montour Falls at the Schuyler County Human Services Complex, 323 Owego St., and they welcome youth to stop in for assistance. For more visit www.livelikeyourock.com. All three counties usually offer a Summer Youth Employment Program that provides jobs to about 100 youth, but this year the funding is in jeopardy due to the economy. Applications are being accepted incase funds are granted. Visit www.fingerlakesworks.com for an application. Teens who have already found a job can offer some advice to those who are still searching as well. Dundee Central High School sophomore Haley Brown found a summer job a Martini’s Shurfine in Dundee. “I have learned that you will gain a lot more respect from people if you’re not afraid to do things. Call employers by yourself, go to get applications by yourself. It looks good and helps you out in the long run,” Brown said. “Look for something that you can see yourself doing all summer, because you will be stuck doing it,” Jamie Wood said. She is sophomore at Emanuel Baptist Academy in Penn Yan and will be working at Lamoka Baptist Camp for the summer. “There are odd jobs around. It may help to go to community events to meet people looking for employees,” Jesse Ninos, Dundee high school junior said. “This year it may be more important than ever to look for a job early…yes, even before school lets out for summer. If you wait till then, most of the jobs will already be taken by other youth,” Martin also said. |
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Area agencies help job-seeking teens
Jun 01, 2010 at 03:01 pm by Observer-Review
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