,
20 tweets,
5 min read
Read on Twitter
NEW EPI REPORT-Class of 2019, College Edition by @eliselgould, @zanemokhiber & @JuliaWolfe94 epi.org/publication/cl…
"Fallout from the Great Recession did a lot of damage to the employment prospects of young adults just entering the workforce after graduating from high school or college—and that damage persisted well into the recovery.
"However, with sustained improvements in economic conditions in recent years, young graduates’ prospects for employment and wage growth have been slowly improving." 
Often forgotten: Fewer than one-fifth of U.S. adults ages 21–24 are college graduates.
"While men and women represent equal shares of those ages 21 to 24, women in this age group are disproportionately more likely to hold a college degree."
"Just over half (54.3 percent) of the 21-to-24-year-old population is white, yet two-thirds (66.0 percent) of young college grads are white."
"Nearly four in five young graduates (77.0 percent) are employed."
"While by many measures the labor market for young graduates is now almost—or perhaps even fully—back to where it was before the recession, the economy of 2007 represents a low bar for economic opportunity.
"We should instead be striving for the high-pressure economy of the late 1990s and 2000, in which an extended period of labor market strength translated into better opportunities for workers across the board.
"We should instead be striving for the high-pressure economy of the late 1990s and 2000, in which an extended period of labor market strength translated into better opportunities for workers across the board."
"One out of every 20 young college graduates is unemployed, a higher rate than in 2000, when only one in 25 was."
So what are young college graudates up to? Most are working.
"The unemployment rate for young college graduates is currently 5.1 percent, just below where it was at the labor market peak of 2007 before the start of the Great Recession (5.2 percent). However, it remains significantly higher than it was in 2000 (4.0 percent)."
"The underemployment rate for college graduates in this age group, currently at 9.9 percent, remains nearly a percentage point higher than it was in 2007 (9.0 percent)."
"All gender and racial/ethnic groups face higher unemployment rates today than in 2000."
... the same is true for underemployment.
Another sign of underlying weakness in the economy: Wages have barely budged since 2000.
Also: The gender and black–white wage gaps are *larger* today than in 2000!
More generally, women, black, and Hispanic workers face a substantial wage penalty.
Conclusion: "Although the Class of 2019 is entering into a markedly stronger economy than those who graduated during the immediate aftermath of the most recent recession, the Class of 2019’s labor market prospects are still not as strong as the Class of 2000’s."
