Tag Archives: youth

Idaho Job Corps Program to Begin Offering Services for Students

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NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Oct. 22, 2019
Information Contact: Tina Polishchuk, (208) 442-4520

The Idaho Job Corps program will begin offering services for its first group of students today, Oct. 22, at the Centennial Job Corps facility, located in Nampa.

The program is funded by a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, awarded to the Idaho Department of Labor, to serve income-eligible youth age 16-24 by connecting them to training and workplace opportunities.

“This demonstration project between the Department of Labor and the state of Idaho is intended to meet the specific workforce needs of the state and take Job Corps into the future,” said U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training John Pallasch. “Welcoming students to their program marks an important moment in this new endeavor, and the Department of Labor is rooting for the success of each and every student who arrives to take control of his or her future.”

Students could be enrolled in the program 3-24 months, depending on their career trajectory, and the goal of the program is to place every student into a sustainable job by the time they graduate from the program.

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Fewer Idaho Teens Working Summer Jobs

In the summer of 2017, thousands of Idaho teens took jobs. But the percentage of teens participating in the labor force remains far below its level in earlier decades. In Idaho, just as nationwide, there’s been a long-term decline in teen participation. Does that decline matter?

Summer Jobs

Summer jobs in Idaho typically peak in July. In the past four summers, Idaho employers added an average 12,600 jobs between April and July. Only one sector usually decreases employment between April and July – education. Between 2014 and 2017, it lost an average of 8,500 jobs between those months. The sectors that typically add the most summer jobs are leisure and hospitality — restaurants, hotels and recreational facilities; federal agencies — the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management; retail — especially gas stations, convenience stores and specialty stores serving tourists; and wholesale — especially those serving the construction, forestry and agricultural industries.

Many of those jobs are taken by teens. Between the second and third quarters of 2016, the number of 14- to 18-year-olds on Idaho payrolls grew from 18,531 to 26,069, according to the Census Bureau’s Quarterly Workforce Indicators.

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Career Information is For Adults Too

Idaho’s Career Information System is not just for kids. The free, customized online tool also helps adults stay on a solid path toward a successful future while they are in school, training or pursuing a new career.

AdultCISUser copyStudents and adults with career plans are more likely to stay in school, pursue a higher education and once they enter the world of work, see greater promotional opportunities. Accessing Idaho’s Career Information System is free and can help both parents and children:

  • Understand how interests and strengths connect to the world of work
  • Define a career path
  • Decide areas of study to pursue in middle/junior high, high school and college
  • Find the training, education, knowledge – and money – necessary for following their dreams.

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Focus on Your Goals During Career Development Month

Career development is a lifelong process of learning, exploring, making decisions and preparing for the future. The answers to the questions “Who am I?” “Where am I going?” and “How do I get there?” change as our lives progress.

Career development begins in early elementary years when we first decide what we will be when we “grow up.” However as we learn more about ourselves and what opportunities are available to us, our career goals evolve.

Career Development Month, beginning Nov. 1, brings awareness to this process and celebrates the mentors, educators, advisors and others who help us every step of the way. On Nov. 15, Lt. Gov. Brad Little will formally announce Gov. Butch Otter’s proclamation of November as Idaho Career Development Month.

At the same ceremony, the Idaho Department of Labor and the Idaho Career Development Association will present the Leadership in Career Development award to Idahoans who make a significant difference in helping others progress in their career development.

You can increase your understanding of your career goals and the steps for achieving them by:

  • Improving your current job skills. Find out about training at your workplace, online or in a class that will help you do your current job better or prepare you for a promotion.
  • Learning about an occupation that might be a great fit for you. Use the Idaho Career Information System (CIS) to find out about the skills, preparation, wages and outlook for any occupation that interests you.
  • Clarifying your goals. Work with a school counselor or Idaho Department of Labor workforce consultant to plan your next steps.

— Terry Mocettini, technical & support materials coordinator, Career Information System

Workshop Helps Youth Learn Why Soft Skills are Important

Employers have been increasingly voicing concerns about job applicants – especially young ones – having basic job skills – what’s called soft skills.

The Idaho Department of Labor took up their cause recently with a workshop in Pocatello to help young people, typically first-time job seekers, find work. And a major focus was on the following soft skills:

  • Showing up for work on time
  •  Proper dress and grooming
  •  Working well with others
  •  Showing initiative
  •  The ability to follow directions
  •  Strong written and verbal communication skills
  • Being polite
Stacy Miller, Mary Johnson and Kim Smith talk about why soft skills are important to employers.

Stacy Miller, Mary Johnson and Kim Smith discuss why soft skills are important to employers.

“Soft skills are one of the key factors which can move a young person from being a job seeker to an employee,” department Regional Economist Dan Cravens told the 30 people who took part in the workshop. “We had many employers and parents in the area request that we do a workshop like this so that local youth can better understand how they need to act in order to find a job, and do well at it.”

Many of the 16-to-24-year-olds face the same challenges young people across the country face – unemployment rates over 16 percent. Unemployment rates would probably be higher for this age group, but too many young job seekers have just given up hope of finding work.
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Spending on Local Education Declines Across U.S.

Spending on local education took a hit during the recent recession, and 2011 was the first year that per student public money spending decreased nationally since the U.S. Census started collecting annual data in 1977 on public education financing.

2011 per pupilThe most recent report shows per pupil expenditures dropping four-tenths of a percentage point between 2010 and 2011.

Idaho is near the bottom of the states in per pupil expenditures, ranking 50th in 2011 at $6,824. Utah was last at $6,212.

Idaho was more than $3,700 below the national average of $10,560. Regionally only two states had per pupil expenditures greater than the national average – Wyoming ranked sixth and Montana ranked 25th.
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Let’s Work: Youth Program Helps Kailamai Hansen Get Her Degree

Kailamai Hansen had a difficult childhood. She moved in and out of foster care during her teen
years and after her mom’s death, struggled with her school studies. After she transferred to an alternative high school at age 17, she began to focus on her schoolwork and graduated early.

Kailamai Hansen (Photo by Lisa Nagrou photography)

Kailamai Hansen (Photo by Lisa Nagrou photography)

At age 18 – Kailamai like many young people who “age out” of the foster system – lacked the knowledge and skill to care for herself financially and she relied on churches and family friends. Eventually she was put in touch with the Idaho Department of Labor.

Workforce consultant Bonnie Niles worked with Kailamai and signed her up to participate in the department’s youth employment program. Funded by Workforce Investment Act dollars from the federal government, the program provides education, training and employment opportunities for low-income youth. In Kailamai’s case, it provided support for tuition and books at North Idaho College.

“I started to realize that education was my ticket to success,” Kailamai said. “It was my one way ticket to a bright future. Through your (Bonnie’s) help I have come to realize that should I dedicate myself to a task, there are people out there that will believe in me and assist me along the way.”

Kailamai received her associate degree and plans to move to Lewis Clark State College to work toward her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. After that, she would like to go to Gonzaga University and either pursue a law degree or a master’s degree in criminal justice or social work.

FAQ Friday – How old does a minor have to be to work?

Now that school is almost over teens are beginning to think about summer jobs. Make sure you know what age requirements exist for a particular job before your child applies. icecream_job

Age 14 is listed by the Fair Labor Standards Act as the minimum age for most non-agricultural work. However, at any age, youth may deliver newspapers; perform in radio, television movie, or theatrical productions; work in businesses owned by their parents (except in mining, manufacturing or hazardous jobs); and perform babysitting or minor chores around a private home.
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Robin Hollis, Workforce Consultant: Helping Idahoans Find Work

Workforce consultant Robin Hollis answers questions about what Idaho Department of Labor consultants do and how they help Idaho job seekers find work:

What does an Idaho Department of Labor workforce consultant do?

Workforce consultants help with job searches and job placement. We also provide guidance, tools and tips to make a job seeker’s application and/or resume more marketable.  robin hollis

Some workforce consultants also help customers with unemployment insurance (UI) or programs that will make them more employable.

My main focus is serving as a Youth Case Manager. I work with at-risk youth between the ages of 16-21, help young people earn their GEDs or mentor and help them determine what career they want to pursue.

We also show people how to use the tools the Department of Labor has to offer such as Idaho’s Career Information System, Labor Market Information (wages and statistics) and all of the available agency website resources.
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Let’s Work: Helping a Payette Man Find a Job He Loves

Keith Jensen is a 19-year-old high school dropout who bounced from couch to couch the past two years, when what he really wanted was his GED and a job.

Reba Elson, a workforce consultant at the Idaho Department of Labor, helped Keith assess his skills and found he was ready to take the keith from payetteGED tests. He had no transportation so his case manager purchased a one-month pass with Treasure Valley Transit so Keith could go to the GED testing location and start his job search.

Reba mentioned during a staff meeting that Keith tested well on the math portion of his GED. Another staff member heard a local precision machine parts company was looking for an applicant who was good with decimals. Reba contacted Keith and the employer about the possibility of on-the-job-training and the employer agreed to an interview.
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