Key points:
- As of late May, summer job postings are down 16.9% from last year, and down slightly more than the 14.3% fall for all job postings.
- On the other hand, summer postings are still elevated compared to 2019 levels, and have fallen more gradually than in recent years.
- While government data shows youth employment dropped in May, summer hiring intentions for more traditional summer jobs (lifeguards, camp counselors, etc.) look relatively sunny compared to more white-collar, corporate summer internships.
Our monthly Labor Market Update looks at important labor market trends, using Indeed and other labor market data. A more comprehensive view of the US labor market can be found in our US Labor Market Overview chartbook. Data from our Job Postings Index — which stands 12.1% above its pre-pandemic baseline as of June 7 — and the Indeed Wage Tracker are regularly updated and can be accessed on our data portal.
As temperatures rise across the US this summer, a divergence is emerging in the national summer jobs market: While demand for traditional summer jobs such as lifeguard and camp counselors stays warm, the market for interns has cooled considerably.
Data from job postings on Indeed show that while seasonal demand for summer jobs was down 16.9% at the end of May from the same time last year, and down 28% from two years ago, it was still up more than 25% from 2019. But after starting the year well above pre-pandemic levels, postings for interns were barely on par with those levels by late May, and at certain points this year have fallen below equivalent pre-pandemic levels.
Summer job postings are highly seasonal, typically starting to rise in April, before peaking later in that month or early May, and then declining throughout the summer. The market peaked this year on April 29 at a relatively low level, some 10% below the 2023 peak, and 11.6% lower than the peak in 2022. But the decline from the apex this season has also been shallower than in years past, suggesting hiring appetites were more robust earlier this year than the late May data would suggest.
But even if the summer job market has cooled compared to recent history, employer demand for these jobs remains elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels. At their highest point in late April, summer job postings were 36.9% above pre-pandemic levels, and remained up by 25.7% from 2019 as of May 31. The relative resilience of summer jobs is tied to the continued strength of US consumption, particularly in the service sector. Americans keep sending their children to camp and continue to take summer vacations as still-robust wage growth — which ticked up in May, according to government data — continues to support leisure spending.
Summer jobs are traditionally a source of employment for younger workers. However, the May jobs report showed a notable decline in employment for workers aged 16-24, suggesting the summer hiring market has cooled significantly. But a deeper look at the data shows employment of teen workers held up, while employment for workers aged 20-24 faltered. This disconnect might be explained by the divergence between traditional summer jobs — which have largely held up and are generally attractive to somewhat younger workers — and internships, which are typically more attractive to slightly older workers, and where postings have fallen much more. Internship job postings are now on par with 2019’s level and are notably lower than in 2022 and 2023.
The divergence between summer jobs and internships is yet another reflection of differing experiences in various sectors of the US labor market. Demand for personal service, health care, and recreational services workers is still strong, while demand for more corporate positions remains tepid.
Methodology
We track summer hiring appetite by tallying US job postings on Indeed that include the term “summer” in the job title, excluding postings with job titles that also include “intern” or “internship.” We track internship postings by counting the postings with “intern” or “internship” in the title. This method doesn’t capture the full extent of seasonal demand but provides a gauge of recent trends and how season postings compare to the prior year.
The number of job postings on Indeed, whether related to paid or unpaid job solicitations, is not indicative of potential revenue or earnings of Indeed, which comprises a significant percentage of the HR Technology segment of its parent company, Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. Job posting numbers are provided for information purposes only and should not be viewed as an indicator of performance of Indeed or Recruit. Please refer to the Recruit Holdings investor relations website and regulatory filings in Japan for more detailed information on revenue generation by Recruit’s HR Technology segment.
