Youth Unemployment and U.S. Job Search Assistance Policy during the Great Recession

We present experimental evidence on the effects of four U.S. job search assistance programs for unemployed youth during the Great Recession. Results show that all four programs reduced Unemployment Insurance (UI) duration and the benefit amounts collected by youth participants, with savings exceeding program costs. The three programs that included monitoring activities and services referrals but did not mandate services participation had little or no effects on employment and earnings. This suggests that the primary effect of these programs was to cause the early UI exits of unemployed youth with no loss of earnings. The program that combined monitoring with mandatory job counseling increased employment rates and earnings, suggesting that job counseling can help unemployed youth to improve their job search efficacy. We conclude that, during recessions, job search assistance programs should focus primarily on providing job counseling and provide less emphasis on monitoring activities for unemployed youth.