Young Workers: A Lost Decade

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This Labor Day , nearly one in three young workers will be at work. This statistic is just one symptom of a far deeper economic reality for workers younger than 35.

This report, based on a nationwide survey of 1,156 people by Peter D. Hart Research Associates for the AFL-CIO and the AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America, examines young workers’ economic standing, attitudes
and hopes for the future. It also draws a comparison with findings from a similar 1999 AFL-CIO study, as well as with attitudes of workers older than 35. The findings reveal a lost decade for young workers in America. Not only
have young workers lost financial ground over the past 10 years; they have also lost some of their optimism.

But this drop in optimism isn’t keeping young workers from getting involved. With a comprehensive and progressive vision for revamping the economy, increasing numbers of young people are becoming politically active.