Lucy Morel considers herself lucky.
The 18-year-old is one of many teens who have spent countless hours searching for a summertime job during a time of double-digit unemployment. But unlike those still looking, she's one of the few to hear the words, "You're hired."
"I applied probably to 15 or 20 places," said the Signal Mountain resident. "I was looking everywhere that I could ... one day after school I just went all around the (Tennessee) Aquarium area and got applications from all those places."
In Tennessee, seasonally adjusted unemployment for April was 10.5 percent, higher than the nation's 9.9 percent but the same as last year's rate, according to the state Department of Labor. An average of 28 percent of Hamilton County's 16- to 19-year-old labor force was unemployed in 2009, according to state labor department statistics.
Nationally, about one in four teens were unemployed in May, according to U.S. labor department statistics.
As high unemployment levels persist, teens are finding their summer job competition isn't just the valedictorian with the perfect GPA, but older adults with real work experience.
TYPICAL TEEN JOBS* Lifeguard* Theme park worker* Camp counselor* Restaurant worker* RetailSource: Gotajob.com
"A lot of the places I went in, I guess I noticed that a lot of the teenagery jobs were being done by grown ups," said Miss Morel, who got a job at a local restaurant. "I got the feeling they were really looking for people who needed the job to make a living."
At Lake Winnepesaukah in Rossville, the average summer employee's age has risen drastically in the past few years, said Human Resources manager Joe Holland. The average age of the 200 or so employees this year is 28.5, he said.
"Before, it was about 20 to 21," Mr. Holland said.
This year, he's seen "a lot of older people that are applying that are out of work and have been for extended periods of time."
Former workers from the carpet industry, manufacturing organizations and trade workers such as carpenters and brick masons flooded the applicant pool this year, he said.
Georgia's April unemployment rate declined by one-tenth of a percentage point, from 10.5 in March to 10.4 percent. In Dalton, the unadjusted unemployment rate is 11.5 percent.
Ruby Falls, another traditional summertime teenage employer, also has seen "a shift into a lot more adult applicants," said Kara VanBrunt, director of operations and strategic development. Though Ruby Falls typically has applicants of all ages, she said, there have been more looking for full-time, 40-hour work weeks.
Not all area employers are seeing increases in their seasonal employees' ages. Thom Benson, spokesman for the Tennessee Aquarium, said 32 of this summer's 33 seasonal employees fall into the 16- to 20-year-old age range.
Susan Harris, director of human resources and organizational development at the aquarium, also said the average age of applicant has stayed in the traditional teenage range.
But times are still tough for young job-seekers, said Gary Rudolph, regional youth coordinator for the Southeast Tennessee Career Center. Jobs in retail, recreation and food service -- where teenagers traditionally work -- are filling up, he said.
"There've been very few opportunities," he said. "You look around, and ordinarily where you'll see young people, you'll now see adults."
Seventeen-year-old Connor Louisell, of Chattanooga, said it's frustrating looking for a job right now. After graduating from high school, she is trying to get "real world experience" before beginning college in the fall, but is having a difficult time finding a place to work.
"I feel like no one's ready to give me a chance for my first job," she said. "It's kind of frustrating, because I feel like if I don't get a job, what's that going to mean for me later on?"
Miss Morel also was up against expectations for previous experience during her job search.
"Some places I went in, they were like, 'If you haven't had a job before, you probably won't be hired because you don't have the experience,'" she said. "Even stuff I would consider being a first job, like a hostess, they wanted people who have done that before, which is kind of hard because you have to start somewhere."
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