Utahns with Medicaid Insurance

Authors: Fiona Dunn (QAMO ’27)
Publication Date: January, 2025.

Utah’s teen summer labor force participation rate ticked downward from 66.2 percent in July 2023 to 65.0 percent in July 2024. The Marriner S. Eccles Institute has been tracking teen employment since last year (Fischer 2024), in part, because teen labor market participation is strongly correlated with upward mobility. Participation in the labor market as a teen may have not only long-term benefits for upward mobility, but teens may also receive short-term benefits such as income and work experience. Utah’s July 2023 – July 2024 decline of just under 1.2 percent was slightly larger than the decline for the nation overall, which fell by 0.8 percent from 44.6 to 43.8 (Figure 1).

Figure 1. July Teen Labor Force Participation Nationally vs. Utah, 2023 – 2024
Note: The figure shows the percent of 16 to 19 year olds that participated in the labor force in 2023 and 2024 for Utah and the nation overall. Data: Current Population Survey.

Utah teens participate in summer employment at much higher rates than the national average, but fewer teens participate in summer employment than in the 1990’s and early 2000’s (Figure 2). Between 1990 and 2024, the percent of Utah teens working at all during the year fell from 67 to 53 percent. The teen labor force participation rate bottomed out in 2010 in Utah and has since been increasing more quickly than the rest of the country.

Figure 2. Annual Teen Labor Force Participation, 1990 – 2024

Note: The figure shows the average percent of 16 to 19 year olds that participated in the labor force annually between 1990 and 2024 for Utah and the nation. Data: Current Population Survey.

The 2024 annual labor force participation rate among Utah teens poses no startling year-to-year change nor digression from the state’s trend since 2010. Utah’s July teen labor force continues to rank highly compared to other states (Figure 3).

Figure 3. July Teen Labor Force Participation by State, 2022 – 2024

Note: The figure displays the average July LFPR of teens aged 16 to 19 by state from 2022 through 2024. Data: Current Population Survey.

Further, Utah’s teen labor force participation rates by month remain comprehensively higher than national rates. July and June show the greatest proportion of Utah teenagers participating in the labor force, respectively, while December ranks third (Figure 4).

Figure 4. Monthly Teen Labor Force Participation Nationally vs. Utah, 2022 – 2024

Note: The figure displays the monthly LFPR of teens aged 16 to 19 in Utah and the USA from 2022 through 2024. Data: Current Population Survey.

The uptick in December participation rates may be a signifier of teenagers picking up seasonal work during time off from school and a positive indication of Utah teens inclination to participate in the labor force.

Given the perceived positive implications of higher teen labor force participation rates, the national decline of such rates has prompted concern, especially without clearly delineated future implications. Yet, Utah is well positioned by its continual to exhibition of strong rates compared to other states and the national average.