Random thoughts
Listening to the radio (1690 AM to be exact), they run these public service announcements about what type of jobs can and can not do, hours , etc.
It's a federal law that governs the type of work high school age and younger kids can do.
It's all about the safety of the children.
I delivered papers, had my route. Now days it's motorized and done in the over night hours. No way a kid could do it.
The other factor working against younger people is the job market frankly sucks. Jobs that were considered "entry level" or part time work for high school kids are now held by adults who are screaming for a "living wage". In a large part these new displaced workers are over qualified. But, they won't miss work because they went to the beach or partied the night before.