HAWAI‘I ROLLS OUT YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM

More than a thousand jobs available for young people this summer

HONOLULU - Lt. Governor Duke Aiona today announced more than a thousand jobs that pay $8 or more per hour are available immediately for young people, ages 14 through 23, from low-income families through the new 2010 Summer Youth Employment Program.

The program allows teens and other young adults from O‘ahu to sign-up for government and non-profit jobs at the Youth Summer Job Enrollment Day. The event will be from 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 22, at the State Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR), Princess Ruth Keelikolani Building, 830 Punchbowl St. in downtown Honolulu.

“This is about providing our young people with an opportunity to develop skills, attitudes and commitment necessary to succeed in today’s workplaces,” said Lt. Governor Aiona. “We are excited about this opportunity for our young people to earn wages, gain meaningful work experience and be exposed to great careers.”

The Summer Youth Employment Program provides summer jobs for young people who meet at least one of the following criteria:

•         Attending a Title I school designated as having a high percentage of students from low-income families; or

•         Receiving free or reduced-price lunches; or

•         In a household receiving public cash assistance; or

•         In a household receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food stamp benefits; or

•         In a household with a gross annual income at or below 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level for Hawai‘i.

The Office of Lieutenant Governor Duke Aiona, DLIR and the State Department of Human Services (DHS) are partnering on this project. DHS is financing the program using Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) federal stimulus funds. The summer jobs are offered at federal, state and county government offices and at non-profit organizations statewide.

Specifically, a minimum of $3 million in TANF funds will go to the program, with funding for Neighbor Islands totaling $1.8 million. Additional federal funds are available if enrollment in the program is larger than expected.

The Lt. Governor has traveled to the Big Island, Maui and Moloka‘i to discuss the program with Workforce Development officials, and is scheduled to visit Kaua‘i on May 21 and Kona on May 26. Young people on the Neighbor Islands who are interested in the program should apply as soon as possible at their nearest DLIR Workforce Development Division Office. 

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