Young People in Peterborough Struggle to Find Summer Jobs
Rising costs and recruitment challenges leave people with fewer opportunities
Young people across Peterborough are finding it increasingly difficult to land summer jobs, as businesses say rising costs and stricter employment laws are making it harder to hire extra staff.
Katrina Pierce from Lincolnshire's Federation of Small Businesses, which also covers young people in Spalding, Bourne and Stamford, says the issue is part of a wider problem affecting the whole workforce, but it’s young people who are often hardest hit.
"This seems to be a kind of workforce-wide, particularly summer issue that won’t just affect young people, but typically it is those younger people who want a summer job between terms, between college and university," she explains.
Pierce says there’s been a 31% drop in the number of summer jobs available.
"In Lincolnshire alone, we've got a £4 billion visitor economy that really just booms during the summer, but I think there are a number of reasons driving this dip."
"One is simply one of cost. Employees are still bearing an awful lot of cost burden—everything from stock, supply, fuel."
She adds that the lack of summer jobs is about more than just earning money.
"A huge issue for all people entering their career is one of work experience."
"Simply to get used to the world of work and getting yourself to work on time, learning the world of work, what you can do, behaviour, how people speak. That’s really, really critical."
Businesses still need to increase their staff numbers during the busy summer months but, according to Pierce, many are having to make tough choices.
"If they can’t or have had to make difficult decisions about their recruitment plans for this year, that will either mean maybe more hours for existing workers, or they maybe have to adapt their opening hours."