Generation Opportunity encourages young Americans to call the White House and demand an end to policies that stifle job creation, hiring, and opportunity

Washington, DC – (8/3/12) – Generation Opportunity, one of the largest grassroots organizations connecting with Millennials through advanced social media outreach and traditional, boots-on-the-ground organizing, announces non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) 18-29 unemployment rate data for July:

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• The youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year olds specifically for July 2012 is 12.7 percent (NSA). Additional notes: the youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year old African-Americans for July 2012 is 22.3 percent (NSA); the youth unemployment rate for 18-29 year old Hispanics for July 2012 is 14.0 percent (NSA); and the youth unemployment rate for 18–29 year old women for July 2012 is 12.6 percent (NSA).

• The declining labor participation rate has created an additional 1.715 million young adults that are not counted as “unemployed” by the U.S. Department of Labor (BLS) because they are not in the labor force, meaning that those young people have given up looking for work due to the lack of jobs.

• If the labor force participation rate were factored into the 18-29 youth unemployment calculation, the actual 18-29-unemployment rate would rise to 16.7 percent (NSA).

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Generation Opportunity President Paul T. Conway, former Chief of Staff of the US Department of Labor and former Chief of Staff of the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), issued the following statement in response to the July 2012 jobs numbers:

“Today’s unemployment number is another indicator of the far greater, more fundamentally devastating, and still under-reported story impacting young Americans. For nearly three and half years, young Americans have experienced historically high unemployment levels – levels that are among the highest since the end of World War II – that tell the story of millions of delayed dreams and careers of the next greatest generation.

“Instead of aggressively embracing policies that liberate businesses to create more jobs, the President and his appointees have pursued an agenda that suffocates economic opportunity under the weight of more spending, higher debt, more regulations, and higher taxes. For young Americans, the message from their government is clear – we are not responsible if our destructive policy decisions eliminate your plans for full-time, meaningful jobs in a career path of your choice. Even worse, elected officials in Washington are proving themselves to be coldly distant from the human costs of unemployment, the personal stresses and frustrations that come from the uncertainty surrounding unemployment.

“Millennials deserve better from their government, especially in light of what they have already contributed to this country. They are the generation that witnessed the 9/11 terror attacks on US soil, bravely responded to fight two wars overseas, selflessly helped rebuild New Orleans and other Gulf Coast communities after Hurricane Katrina, and offered their personal support to those most impacted by the economic collapse. Yet, each day they awake to an economic reality, which includes record high unemployment and limited opportunities. Their message to all candidates is clear – we want to get on with our lives and realize our dreams. However, if the solutions you offer equal less jobs and more debt for our country, you will fail to win our enthusiasm and our vote.”

Generation Opportunity commissioned a poll with the polling company, inc./WomanTrend (April 16 – 22, 2011, +/- 4% margin of error) and a highlighted result for all young Americans ages 18-29 appears below:

• 77% of young people ages 18-29 either have or will delay a major life change or purchase due to economic factors:[list type="arrow"] [li]
  • 44% delay buying a home;
  • 28% delay saving for retirement;
  • 27% delay paying off student loans or other debt;
  • 27% delay going back to school/getting more education or training;
  • 26% delay changing jobs/cities;
  • 23% delay starting a family;
  • 18% delay getting married.

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• Just 31% of 18 – 29 year-olds approve of President Obama’s handling of youth unemployment.

Generation Opportunity is encouraging its Facebook fans, as well as its thousands of grassroots supporters across the nation, to call the White House today at (202) 456-1414 and demand that the policies of the last three and a half years, which have stifled job creation, be reversed in favor of policies that free up Americans to create jobs, to hire, and to restore the American tradition of access to opportunity for all.

To see our call to action, go to: http://generationopportunity.org/callthewhitehouse/