In the Bay Area, 17-year-old twin brothers Alex and Nicolas Alessi, along with their friend Mason Grant, faced significant challenges securing summer jobs. Despite applying to around 20 positions, the twins were rejected, while Grant struggled to progress beyond initial interviews, citing the need for references and experience that high schoolers often lack. Frustrated by these barriers, the trio created JobMatch, a job board designed to connect teens with work opportunities, with guidance from Tom Alessi, the twins’ father and a software engineering leader at Johnson & Johnson Vision.
JobMatch allows users to post and search for jobs for free, and it’s already being used by hundreds in their community. The founders themselves have landed gigs through the platform, such as washing cars, pulling weeds, and helping with moves, which Tom describes as “super lucrative” for them. The teens jokingly refer to themselves as the “Winklevoss twins and Mark Zuckerberg” of their school, reflecting their entrepreneurial spirit.
Teen employment in the U.S. has been declining for decades, with the employment-to-population ratio for 16- to 19-year-olds dropping from 59.9% in July 1979 to 37.9% in July 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Notably, teens from higher-income families are more likely to work during the summer, with 44% of those from households earning $150,000 or more employed in 2023, compared to just 27% from households earning less than $30,000. This gap is attributed to better access to transportation, fewer nonmarket responsibilities like housework, and more robust job markets in affluent areas, as noted in studies from the BLS and Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market Studies.
The employment disparity widened in the 2000s, particularly for low-income teens, with upper-middle-income white teens having employment rates four times higher than low-income Black teens by 2010. Policy analyst Kyle Ross from the Center for American Progress highlights that teens from disadvantaged backgrounds often lack the resources to build necessary skills. Federal programs like the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which supports youth employment, face potential cuts, further limiting opportunities for those needing extra support.
Meanwhile, competition for traditional teen jobs—such as waitstaff, fast-food, and recreation roles—has intensified, with young college graduates, older workers, and foreign-born workers filling roles once held by teens. In 2023, only 18.7% of minimum-wage workers were 16- to 19-year-olds, down from 25.4% two decades ago. As entry-level wages stagnate, many teens prioritize education, with 48.4% of 16- to 19-year-olds enrolled in school in July 2024, compared to 10.4% in 1985.
However, some parents, particularly in higher-income families, emphasize work to teach real-world skills. Financial planner Marilou Davido encourages her 16-year-old son, Luca, to work jobs like refereeing hockey ($45/hour) and shucking corn ($15/hour plus tips) to learn financial responsibility. She matches his earnings in a Roth IRA to promote long-term savings. Similarly, financial planner Michael Cochran matches his sons’ earnings in Roth IRAs to instill financial literacy and demonstrate the power of compounding.
For the JobMatch founders, entrepreneurship offers an alternative to traditional jobs. Tom Alessi, frustrated that schools focus solely on academics, mentors his sons and Grant in startup skills like customer feedback and product development. The twins plan to invest 90% of their earnings and cash gifts for their future, viewing college as a backup to their entrepreneurial ambitions. Grant values the networking opportunities JobMatch provides, aiming to build connections and gain experience. Their initiative reflects a growing trend among teens from affluent families to pursue entrepreneurial ventures, seeking flexibility and unlimited earning potential in a rapidly evolving job market.