More than 1,400 people between 14 and 22 years old got jobs through this year’s U.S. Army Europe Summer Hire program.
They were the lucky ones.
Due to budget constraints, 1,000 applicants were turned away. The program almost got canceled.
More than $1.7 million was given to the program this year, mostly from U.S. Army Europe and the Army’s Installation Management Agency-Europe.
The jobs program gives young people meaningful work experience, said Rose Schwarzkopf, a human resources specialist with USAREUR’s Civilian Personnel Directorate.
“It also keeps the students from getting bored and possibly getting into trouble due to having too much idle time,” she said.
From June 26 to Aug. 4, the 1,400 employees worked more than 336,000 hours, said Moe Shoots, a human resources specialist for the Civilian Human Resources Agency-Europe.
“We consider this year’s program a success because we got a majority of them paid on time,” Shoots said.
Participants were required only to be a dependent of a soldier or military civilian and to reside with them. Some employees were young military spouses. Others were college students living with their families for the summer.
Applicants chose jobs from three fields: clerical, involving filing and office work; labor, which included tasks such as landscaping; and, if 16 or older, working at a local Child Development Center, said Trey Coggins, the human resources agency’s summer hire program manager.
Applicants were placed in jobs based on age first, with priority given to those 16 and older.
Shoots, who has worked for the agency since 1994 and managed the program four times, said applicants have been turned away in past years due to lack of positions.
Plans call for continuing the program next year.
