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Teens ages 16 to 19 were employed at nearly half the rate of young adults ages 20 to 24 in July 2026

August 26, 2026

The month of July typically marks the summertime peak in youth employment. The employment–population ratio, which is the percentage of the population that is currently working, was 36.5 percent for teens ages 16 to 19 in July 2026, compared with 67.5 percent for young adults ages 20 to 24. The gap in the employment–population ratio between the two age groups has been about 30 percentage points since the late 2000s.

Chart Image
Chart Data

Employment–population ratio of youth, by age, July, 1948–2026
Month	16–24 years	16–19 years	20–24 years
Jul 1948	60.7	58.3	62.4
Jul 1949	57.6	53.4	60.6
Jul 1950	58.6	55.2	61.1
Jul 1951	61.5	58.9	63.5
Jul 1952	59.3	57.5	60.8
Jul 1953	58.6	56.6	60.4
Jul 1954	54.7	51.3	57.9
Jul 1955	57.2	54.2	60.0
Jul 1956	59.8	57.7	61.7
Jul 1957	60.0	56.2	63.4
Jul 1958	54.4	49.0	59.3
Jul 1959	56.1	50.8	61.2
Jul 1960	57.4	52.6	62.2
Jul 1961	55.2	50.5	59.9
Jul 1962	57.0	52.0	61.8
Jul 1963	55.3	48.1	62.4
Jul 1964	56.2	49.2	63.3
Jul 1965	58.6	52.1	65.4
Jul 1966	60.8	56.0	66.0
Jul 1967	61.2	55.9	66.4
Jul 1968	61.2	55.3	67.0
Jul 1969	62.2	56.6	67.6
Jul 1970	60.7	54.5	66.6
Jul 1971	59.7	53.6	65.4
Jul 1972	61.5	55.2	67.1
Jul 1973	64.0	57.3	69.9
Jul 1974	64.1	57.0	70.4
Jul 1975	61.1	54.6	66.9
Jul 1976	63.7	56.6	69.9
Jul 1977	64.7	57.6	70.7
Jul 1978	66.9	60.1	72.6
Jul 1979	67.6	59.9	73.9
Jul 1980	65.1	57.8	71.0
Jul 1981	64.8	55.7	71.8
Jul 1982	61.8	52.1	69.1
Jul 1983	63.3	53.5	70.5
Jul 1984	66.1	56.7	72.8
Jul 1985	65.9	56.6	72.7
Jul 1986	66.7	56.7	74.1
Jul 1987	67.3	57.3	75.0
Jul 1988	68.5	59.6	75.5
Jul 1989	69.2	59.6	76.7
Jul 1990	67.0	56.4	75.1
Jul 1991	63.5	52.3	71.8
Jul 1992	63.8	52.0	72.5
Jul 1993	64.6	53.3	73.1
Jul 1994	64.7	54.0	73.0
Jul 1995	64.9	54.8	73.0
Jul 1996	64.1	54.0	72.8
Jul 1997	64.6	53.0	74.8
Jul 1998	64.9	54.7	74.1
Jul 1999	65.2	54.5	74.9
Jul 2000	64.8	53.5	74.5
Jul 2001	63.3	51.5	73.2
Jul 2002	60.9	47.7	71.8
Jul 2003	58.3	43.7	70.3
Jul 2004	58.9	43.9	71.0
Jul 2005	59.3	44.3	71.4
Jul 2006	59.2	44.9	71.1
Jul 2007	58.0	42.3	71.1
Jul 2008	56.0	39.2	70.1
Jul 2009	51.4	35.0	65.0
Jul 2010	48.9	31.3	63.0
Jul 2011	48.8	31.0	62.7
Jul 2012	50.2	32.7	63.7
Jul 2013	50.7	32.8	64.3
Jul 2014	51.9	33.4	65.7
Jul 2015	52.7	34.3	66.6
Jul 2016	53.2	36.1	66.4
Jul 2017	54.8	36.7	68.9
Jul 2018	55.0	37.2	69.0
Jul 2019	56.2	38.4	70.3
Jul 2020	46.7	32.3	58.1
Jul 2021	54.4	38.9	66.6
Jul 2022	55.3	38.4	69.2
Jul 2023	55.0	38.0	68.2
Jul 2024	54.5	37.9	68.2
Jul 2025	53.1	35.2	67.6
Jul 2026	53.8	36.5	67.5
Note: The employment–population ratio is the percentage of civilian noninstitutional population that is currently working. The month of July typically is the summertime peak in youth employment. These data are not seasonally adjusted.

Employment–population ratios for both age groups have declined from their historical highs. For young adults ages 20 to 24, the ratio peaked at 76.7 percent in July 1989. For teens ages 16 to 19, it reached a high of 60.1 percent in July 1978. Compared with July 2026, the employment–population ratio has fallen by 9.2 percentage points for young adults and by 23.6 percentage points for teens ages 16 to 19 since those peaks.

These data are from the Current Population Survey. Because this analysis focuses on the seasonal changes in youth employment and unemployment that occur each summer, the data are not seasonally adjusted. For more information, see "Employment and Unemployment among Youth — Summer 2026."

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Teens ages 16 to 19 were employed at nearly half the rate of young adults ages 20 to 24 in July 2026 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2026/teens-ages-16-to-19-were-employed-at-nearly-half-the-rate-of-young-adults-ages-20-to-24-in-july-2026.htm (visited August 26, 2026).

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