Youth employment in spring, summer 2013 rose 2.1 million

The number of youth employed during spring and summer rose 2.1 million this year over the same period last year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday.

The number of people ages 16 to 24 who were employed between April and July rose to 19.7 million, the largest figure in at least three years, according to government figures.

Spring and summer are peak employment seasons for youth. Many start looking for summer jobs beginning in April, working through the end of the summer.

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The economic recovery has opened up more opportunities for youth to land jobs, economists have said. But the labor market is still tough. Young workers are still competing with older workers for similar job opportunities.

According to Tuesday’s report, the youth labor force participation rate last month is still 17 percentage points below the peak rate of 77.5% in 1989.

Most teens, according to Tuesday’s data release, are working traditional retail, leisure and hospitality jobs. The leisure and hospitality industry accounted for 26% of jobs held by youth. Retail jobs accounted for 19%.

The number of unemployed youth last month also fell slightly from July 2012, falling from 4 million to 3.8 million. The unemployment rate last month for youth was 16.3%, more than double the U.S. rate of 7.4%.

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ricardo.lopez@latimes.com