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Hi-techs woo teen staff
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June 4, 1997: 8:16 p.m. ET
Labor crunch forcing companies to recruit high-school graduates
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Technical companies facing a critical labor shortage are heading back to school -- high school, that is.
Some firms have found an unusual source for new workers by recruiting high school graduates for computer-related jobs with starting salaries of up to $40,000, an employment analyst says.
"Companies are starving for people with technology skills," said John Challenger, executive vice president at Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., a Chicago-based employment firm. "I think people are kind of shocked. It's certainly almost taboo in society. Parents tell their kids the last thing they should do is skip college for the big money."
Challenger said the new trend is a result of the strong economy and low unemployment rate of 4.9 percent. Technical companies are desperate for skilled staff.
The U.S. Department of Labor said 58,000 teen-agers between 16 and 19 held computer-related jobs in 1996, compared with 4,000 in 1986.
"Kids today have grown up with technology," Challenger said.
Hollywood giants in the animation industry like Walt Disney Co. have found a good source for new workers at Rowland High School in Rowland Heights, Calif., Challenger said. Salaries for animator trainees start at about $40,000 and rise to about $80,000.
"We would hire anyone who has great talent," a Disney spokesman said. "We're not just looking at high school graduates."
And in Washington, D.C., 23 students at Ballou High School will take jobs in several northern Virginia technology firms. The students are finishing up special training courses and will earn salaries of $25,000 to $30,000 a year if they pass certification exams.
However, the trend isn't without potential problems. One question is whether an 18-year-old will be mature enough to handle the job pressure and work with people who are much older. Another issue is possible resentment among older employees.
"It's novel enough that some problems haven't manifested themselves yet," Challenger said. "Inevitably, it creates problems. It does create tensions in the workplace."
In the long term, youths could decide they want to get their degrees, leading some companies to offer to pay for college at night to encourage them to stay. 
-- Martine Costello
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