US Sees Spike in Youth Joblessness

Summary

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Bloomberg Businessweek Podcast Episode Summary

Episode Title

US Sees Spike in Youth Joblessness
Date: September 8, 2025
Hosts: Carol Massar & Tim Stenovec
Guest: Dan Shapiro, COO of LinkedIn

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Main Theme

This episode dissects the recent troubling uptick in youth unemployment in the United States, in the wake of an underwhelming jobs report. The hosts are joined by Dan Shapiro from LinkedIn, who lends data-driven perspective on shifting labor market dynamics, especially as they affect new graduates and young workers. Discussions include the key challenges facing entry-level job seekers, how employers are rethinking talent in the AI era, broader labor shortages, and evolving compensation trends.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Current State of the US Labor Market

• Moderation in Job Growth: Recent jobs report shows only 22,000 nonfarm payroll jobs added in August, well below expectations.
• Declining Opportunities: The jobless rate has ticked up to 4.3%, with revisions showing June experienced the first employment shrinkage since 2020.
• Quote (Host):

  "We did see job growth moderate materially in recent months and openings have declined, weighing on broader economic activity." (01:43)

2. Youth Unemployment - A Worsening Trend

• New Highs: Unemployment among 16-24 year olds now at 10.5%, highest since April 2021.
• Entry-Level Struggles: Recent grads are finding it harder to land first jobs; recruiting for entry-level roles has slowed down significantly.
• Quote (Bloomberg Host):

  “That unemployment rate now at 10.5%, that’s the highest it’s been going back to April of 2021.” (03:32)

• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  "There has been some reports of slowdown in the amount of entry level hiring that companies are doing...it might be more competitive than we have seen in prior years." (02:31)

3. The AI Factor: A Blessing and a Barrier

• AI Skills Gap: Employers are prioritizing candidates with AI tool proficiency, viewing new grads as potentially more adaptable.
• Advice to Young Workers: Emphasize AI fluency and the ability to apply new technologies in the workplace.
• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  “Companies are looking for people comfortable with AI tools...they might be more flexible to adopt some of the new technologies that are so in demand.” (02:31)

• Long-Term Impact: Those who leverage this period to build and demonstrate AI skills may thrive as companies undergo digital transformation.
• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  “The people that build great careers are the people that use this opportunity as a chance to really show what they’re capable of and help organizations go through a transformation that, honestly, a lot of leaders are nervous about.” (04:20)

4. Defining 'AI Fluency':

• The Moving Target: What constitutes “AI fluency” is evolving. Prompt engineering—a trendy role two years ago—is now much less relevant.
• AI as a Habit: It’s about integrating AI into daily workflow and continuously exploring how it can improve routine tasks.
• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  “51% of workers around the world, they think of keeping up on AI tools as like a completely other job that they're doing on top of their day job.” (05:31)

• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  "On a daily basis, you look at the things that you're doing and you ask yourself, is there something that I could be doing better by using AI?" (05:31)

5. Labor Shortages and Skills Gaps Beyond AI

• Field Roles Still in Demand: Despite AI’s prominence, trades and field roles (e.g., electricians, contractors) are hard to fill and not always replaceable by technology.
• Immigration and Talent Pool: Host raises concern that pushback against immigration may be limiting available talent for vital roles.
• Emerging Tools: LinkedIn’s new Hiring Assistant product uses “agentic technology” to help recruiters find overlooked talent with the right skills.
• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  “Even though hiring has slowed, they consistently still say that one of the biggest challenges that they have is finding great talent for whatever skills they're looking for.” (07:18)

6. Compensation Trends

• Wages Holding Steady (So Far): Despite softer job growth, average hourly earnings rose 3.7% year-over-year.
• Possible Future Changes: Companies are balancing investments in AI with managing compensation and hiring numbers.
• Quote (Dan Shapiro):

  “Hiring trends have slowed but wages have maintained fairly stable. So it'll be interesting to see if that persists.” (08:50)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Dan Shapiro (LinkedIn) on Entry-Level Hiring:

  "Perhaps you're worried about [new grads] landing their first role. And so it might take them a little bit longer, it might be a bit more competitive than we have seen in prior years." (02:31)

• On AI’s Rapid Evolution:

  “What was hip and new two years ago is now becoming not what people are focused on...There is a mix of understanding what tools are out there and what they can do, but also just to have a habit of bringing it into your daily work and honestly showing your colleagues around you what's possible when you find that nugget.” (05:31)

• On the Unfilled Roles Beyond Tech:

  “If you need a contractor or a plumber or electrician, they're not around. So I don't necessarily see the AI connection there. I mean, where else are there the disconnects maybe in our labor force?” (06:39, Host)

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Important Timestamps

• 01:43 — Episode dives into the latest jobs report and broader labor trends.
• 02:31 — Dan Shapiro discusses shifts in entry-level and youth employment, AI demand.
• 03:32 — Youth unemployment at a post-pandemic high.
• 05:31 — Redefining “AI fluency” and its workplace implications.
• 07:18 — Discussion of shortages in skilled field and trade roles; LinkedIn’s new hiring tech.
• 08:50 — Wage trend observations and company strategies.

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Conclusion

This episode underscores the challenging job landscape facing young Americans, especially recent graduates, amidst rising youth unemployment and an evolving labor market increasingly structured around artificial intelligence. The insights from LinkedIn’s Dan Shapiro offer both a sobering look at near-term hiring slowdowns and an optimistic call for adaptability: youths who embrace AI and lifelong learning are best positioned to thrive in this transitional economy. Non-tech roles remain crucial and hard to fill, compounding the complexity of workforce management in 2025.

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Transcript

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You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Massar and Tim Stanvak on Bloomberg Radio.

[Bloomberg Host]

We know the labor report certainly top of mind today and we want to kind of stay on it for a little bit more because we did see job growth moderate materially in recent months and openings have declined, weighing on broader economic activity activity. Just a reminder in case you've been under a rock today, nonfarm payrolls did increase 22,000 in August.

I mean the range, that was a low. The range, remember, was 0 to 144,000. You highlighted that yesterday and nobody had negative right? But now 22, it's not good.

No. And those revisions showed employment shrank in June for the first time since 2020. That jobless rate ticking up to 4.3%. We got a good voice on this.

Dan Shapiro is CEO of LinkedIn. He joins us from Sunnyvale, California. Dan, you got great data on the LinkedIn platform. Was this as shocking to you as I think it was to a lot of folks out there?

[Dan Shapiro]

Well, the labor market right now, it's slow but steady. And I think that we've seen pockets of continued slowdown but also pockets of strength. I think On a global basis, health care is probably the area of greatest positivity around the world. I think the conversation that a lot of people are having right now is about what's happening with new college grads, entry level roles. There has been some reports of slowdown in the amount of entry level hiring that companies are doing. And if you know someone that's graduating from school right now, perhaps you're worried about them landing their first role. And so it might take them a little bit longer, it might be a bit more competitive than we have seen in prior years. I think on the flip of that, one of the advantages that people coming out of college right now have is that companies are looking for people comfortable with AI tools. And oftentimes they find that new college grads that haven't been in the workplace yet, perhaps haven't developed all of their habits around the working world, they might be more flexible to adopt some of the new technologies that are so in demand and the skill sets so in demand by employers.

[Bloomberg Host]

So let's talk a little bit about this. Shout out to Kevin Gordon out at Charles Schwab. I saw him post this chart earlier in the day. This is the unemployment rate for those who are between the ages of 16 and 24. So those young people who you mentioned, Dan, that unemployment rate now at 10.5%, that's the highest it's been going back to April of 2021. So, you know, in the recovery of the COVID pandemic or the sort of the peak of the COVID pandemic a few months after that, you talked about I obviously being something there that's affecting this. But I'm wondering what that does for longer term career prospects if people early in their careers just cannot get off the sidelines.

[Dan Shapiro]

Well, I think that for new college grads there's definitely the process of landing your first job. But I think the thing that employers are really, really focused on right now is they're trying to figure out how to retool and upskill their workforces for an economy that is really focused on AI as a way that you win in your market. And they look at new college grads and people earlier in their career and they're thinking to themselves, these might be the people that are more flexible, that are more fluent with AI, that really can help us go through the transformation that, that we know we're going to have to go through as an organization. So my advice to people that are earlier in their career is become fluent in AI tools. Showcase to employers that, you know, these Tools that you can bring them into effect in your new work. And I think we're going to find that the people that build great careers are the people that use this opportunity as a chance to really show what they're capable of and help organizations go through a transformation that, honestly, a lot of leaders are nervous about.

[Bloomberg Host]

What does it mean to be fluent in AI tools? Because two years ago, we were being told, hey, prompt engineer, that's the hottest job around. Well, guess what? Everybody knows how to be a prompt engineer now, so those jobs don't exist at all. What does it mean to be fluent in AI?

[Dan Shapiro]

It's changing so quickly. In fact, you know, there's this great stat we recently surveyed, folks, and realized that 51% of workers around the world, they think of keeping up on AI tools as like a completely other job that they're doing on top of their day job. And so what was hip and new two years ago is now becoming not what people are focused on. I think the key thing about AI fluency is that on a daily basis, you look at the things that you're doing and you ask yourself, is there something that I could be doing better by using AI? Now, if I think about myself personally, that might be writing the first draft of a presentation, it might be that I'm trying to get up to speed on new tariff legislation. And so maybe I'm not as familiar with that, and I want to use AI to help educate me on how this might impact the markets that I'm participating in. This is something that I definitely did earlier in the year as there was a lot in the news about tariffs. So I think it's a mindset. There is a mix of understanding what tools are out there and what they can do, but also just to have a habit of bringing it into your daily work and honestly showing your colleagues around you what's possible when you find that nugget.

[Bloomberg Host]

And yet, where is it that people need workers? Because we talk so much, Dan, about folks who are building power plants to meet the demands of AI, the energy demands that there's not the engineers around. If you need a contractor or a plumber or electrician, they're not around. So I don't necessarily see the AI connection there. I mean, where else are there the disconnects maybe in our labor force? And how is the pushback against immigrants impacting the ability for people to maybe find workers that they need for different types of jobs?

[Dan Shapiro]

Yeah, I spend a lot of my time talking to heads of HR and talent at companies in the US and abroad. And you know, even though hiring has slowed, they consistently still say that one of the biggest challenges that they have is finding great talent for whatever skills they're looking for. Sometimes those are skills that might be more out in the field, sometimes those are more corporate roles. But there is still an insatiable need to find great folks. And you know, one of the products that we announced earlier this week is we believe that agentic technology, it's going to change how people do their jobs, but it's also going to change how companies hire. And so we launched a product called Hiring Assistant that is all about helping recruiters find talent that they otherwise wouldn't have been able to find and really allow organizations to find find that person that meets the needs of their skills. And in some cases that's going to be a role where AI skills are a core part. But in other cases, it'll be the kind of roles that you mentioned where it's more about building the power plants that facilitate this major boom we're seeing in data centers.

[Bloomberg Host]

Hey, I am also curious what you're seeing about compensation. And we did get a read certainly that within the monthly jobs report this morning. And we did see hourly average hourly earnings come in. Let me just look here. Month over month, up 3.10of a percent. Year over year, up 3.7 10of a percent. Some concerns though about we're starting to see some softening when it comes to wage gains. What can you tell us about what you are seeing via the platform when it comes to compensation?

[Dan Shapiro]

I don't have any unique data offer on compensation per se. I know that, you know, one of the things that a lot of people are reporting on is that hiring trends have slowed but wages have maintained fairly stable. So it'll be interesting to see if that persists. I do think companies are looking at their PNL and they're trying to figure out how to invest in AI tools while continue to build the teams they need. And so in some cases they're looking at the number of the people that they're hiring, but they're also looking at their compensation structures.

[Bloomberg Host]

All right, going to leave it there. Hey, listen, thank you so much, Dan. Have a great weekend. Dan Shapiro is Chief operating officer for LinkedIn, joining us from Sunnyvale, California on this Jobs Friday.

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