OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — "It seems like over the last year or two I've been getting a lot less applications," said Charles Thompson, manager at Pizza Shoppe off Santa Fe.
Fewer applications from teenagers, that is.
It surprises Thompson, who's managed the pizza place for 20 years.
Lately, it seems teens are not interested in the typical summer jobs.
"A lot of them, they don't have the same mindset or goals that we had when we were younger. It's just a different world," Thompson concluded.
A big help for Thompson is that he has employees who started out at 14 and come back every summer.
The city of Overland Park is seeing this trend, too.
"There has been somewhat of a decrease, and we have been able to fill many of our positions, but we are lagging in our lifeguard positions," said Lenear Watson, HR manager for Overland Park.
It's also a nationwide trend.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in July 2016, the teen labor force participation rate was 43.2 percent, down almost 30 percent from the highest point of 71.8 percent in July 1978.
That number is expected to dip lower in the coming years.
So, what gives?
"A lot of the people that I went to school with did not have jobs. Their parents paid for everything, and they're a little bit less mature and don't spend their money as wisely," said high school graduate Anastasia Kling.
Kling said she's always had two jobs, but she thinks lots of kids may not want to put in the work for what they want.
"I decided that if I wanted to go out with my friends and stuff, obviously I couldn't keep asking my parents for money, but it's a maturity thing. It helps you be mature and be responsible," Kling said.
There are other factors that point to an emphasis in academics.
"They tend to pursue activities such as summer school, summer enrichment, an international student, studying abroad, sports. There are a variety of reasons for why we're seeing a slump," Watson said.
But Thompson said he thinks it might be something else.
"Honestly, I'd say a lot of it is just lazy. They have the freedom, it seems like, to stay at home if they want to, and I think they take advantage of not having to work," said Thompson.
Thompson said now he's seeing older folks who have already had a career applying to work at the pizza place.
Watson has been in HR work for about 20 years and noticed an evolution in teen employment.
"If you look at some of the data, there was more competition in terms of so many teens for just one job, versus more jobs than we have teenagers. There are more types of opportunities that teenagers have now and they didn't have, say, 20 years ago," Watson said.
Overland Park has around 10 open positions that teens would usually fill. They're jobs at the golf course, Deanna Rose Farmstead, the soccer complex, and pools.
Watson said getting creative with social media seems to be the route they'll take to get it done.
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