In this recession, younger workers can be the most vulnerable.
According to an AFL-CIO survey, a third of workers under 35 worked Labor Day. A third have to live at home. Half make less than $30,000 a year.
"Young workers across so many metrics are doing worse than young workers were just 10 years ago and are doing worse than our counterparts 35 and older," said Jen Jannon, regional director of Working America, the community affiliate of the AFL-CIO, who worked on the survey.
That didn't surprise 23-year-old Patrick Frank, interviewed on his lunch break in a park a few blocks from the White House.
"Just because of how things are trickling down, people are way overqualified for entry level positions and that's forcing people to take unpaid internships, live at home," he said.
Kirsten Sands, 21, said younger workers are looking over their shoulder these days.
"Interns are even a threat," she said. "I mean, they work for free and this city runs on interns."
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The immediate outlook isn't good. About 1.6 million new grads were added to the line of job seekers last May. Last July, 400,000 people lost their jobs. Sabri Ben-Achour reports....
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