Oneida County expands youth-employment opportunities

The program is open to all Oneida County youth who are legally able to work, and participants receive the current minimum wage of $13.20 per hour.

Youth employment, enhanced internships, and community impact are the key elements of the program.

The county will build on its successful Oneida County Summer Youth Employment Program by creating a youth-employment program to provide work opportunities for youth ages 14 through 19 year-round. The program, along with being open to a wider pool of people, will expand summer jobs to more work sites and offer part-time work through the school year. Youth will generally work between 60 and 100 hours in July and August at summer work sites, and hours are capped at 20 per work for any in-school employment.

In order to offer enhanced internships, the county is expanding its Oneida County College Student Corps from just summer internships to offer year-round internships. As with the summer-only internships, employers must match county dollars to support the development of the emerging workforce. Interns cannot displace existing workers are generally limited to 30 hours or less during the school year.

Finally, the county plans to use student workers to help remedy delayed maintenance and beautification projects to not only spruce things up but also learn the importance of community service and pride.

“Whether there are shrubs to trim, rooms to paint, cleaning projects that are overdue, or any number of other things where you need an extra hand, I invite any entity in Oneida County to give young people, who can use a close-to-home work experience, the opportunity to show what they can do,” Picente said.

Communities and groups that want help with a community-benefit work project should complete an application to describe the community benefits of the project. Projects at private homes and on the grounds of for-profit entities generally will not be considered.

Application materials for students, potential employers, and work sites are available at ocgov.net/workforcedev.

The program, first referenced by Picente during his state of the county address in April, utilizes American Rescue Plan Act funding.