While the minimum wage’s increase of 87 cents per hour may be music to high school students’ ears, it does come with its downsides. Students looking to make an income and work part time are struggling more and more to land jobs.
As of Jan. 1, 2023, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced the new minimum wage to be $14.13. Furthermore, effective on Jan. 1, 2024, the state minimum wage will officially increase another 87 cents. Students at Communications High School question if this development will benefit them.
Junior Isabela Delgado of Eatontown is currently employed and paid minimum wage for her work at Coney Waffle, an ice cream establishment based around Monmouth County.
“I think the increase is really good because I’ll be able to save more for college, and everything is getting more expensive nowadays,” Delgado said.
Despite the benefits for those employed, the wage increase is not helping the jobless.
Junior Bailey McBride of Aberdeen is currently unemployed and believes her struggles of landing a job are partly due to the minimum wage increase.
“I’ve been actively trying to find a job since freshman year, and I haven’t had any success,” McBride said. “more and more businesses are distancing themselves from hiring teens, and it’s very frustrating to be on the receiving end of that.”
Delgado agrees with McBride regarding businesses becoming picky with their hires, due to the wage increase.
“Businesses will probably be more selective with who they hire and how many employees they want because they are paying more money,” Delgado said. “They might be less inclined to hire [teenagers] because they want their potential hires to have past experience.”
However, students aren’t just finding it harder to acquire jobs because of the growth in pay. According to the Washington Post, 32% of teens ages 16-19 were jobless during the pandemic. Coming out the other side, the rate is still almost 14%.
The competition for limited positions is much greater and creates difficulty for younger, lesser experienced candidates, like high schoolers–especially those who missed out on gaining work experience during the years of the pandemic.
“Hopefully I’ll be able to find a job soon, but I do think that the minimum wage increase is a step in the right direction,” McBride said.
