A major factor resulting in the high unemployment during the Great Depression was government's attempt to prop up wages above market rates. In modern day America, the rate propping goes on, mostly at the low end of the pay scale via minimum wage laws.
The propping up of the low end of the pay scale is having the same impact for teens that the across the board wage propping did during the Great Depression, huge unemployment.
The unemployment rate for 16 to 19-year-olds climbed to 24% in June, the latest Labor Department data shows — more than double the national 9.5% unemployment rate. African American teens were even worse off; their unemployment rate reached 37.9% in June.
(Chart via WSJ)
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