We broke the ladder
- Joanne Jacobs
- Nov 28, 2025
- 2 min read
When he came to New York City from Senegal, Cheikhou Niane worked as a street peddler till he got his green card. Then he was a dishwasher and a cab driver, before he got his big break: He was hired as a bathroom attendant at an upscale French restaurant. Including tips, he doubled his take-home pay. The restaurant cut his job after a magazine story that called it demeaning, but he switched to bussing tables. "Providing things for others . . . brought me joy -- especially the life I've given my wife and six children," he says in The Free Press.
His boss at the restaurant, who also came illegally but later got a green card, started work as a bus boy in London. He prefers to hire immigrants for their hustle.
If illegal workers are deported and fewer immigrants arrive, we'll discover whether there are "jobs Americans won't do," writes Jamie K. Wilson, executive editor at Conservatarian Press, on PJ Media. She fears young Americans don't have the work habits to climb the skills ladder.
We're not training young people to become competent adults, she writes. Teenagers don't take the entry-level jobs -- bagging groceries, bussing tables, mowing lawns, stocking shelves -- that teach "punctuality, resilience, communication, and responsibility." Those became jobs for immigrants.
While teens were drifting out of the workforce, older workers, the masters of their trades, were losing their apprentices. Construction, agriculture, landscaping, roofing, plumbing, electrical, hospitality, you name it — one industry after another abandoned training in favor of illegal labor that was cheaper, easier, and instantly available.
Automation is eliminating many starter jobs, but there are jobs for humans, Wilson writes. They require "craftsmanship, mechanical judgment, problem-solving, and repair." But "we have built a society that has trouble changing a smoke detector battery."
To "rebuild the culture of competence," we need to bring back starter jobs for teenagers, she writes. We need to link high school with apprenticeships in skilled trades. Build ladders.
Many of Gen Z are having difficulty in the workforce as in many cases, it's a challenge to get them to show up at work, or they need a mental health day, etc...As a whole, I took far fewer sick days in my career than most of Gen Z does (if you're out one day a week, that's 20% of the time you're not there to do the job you were assigned).
Many entry level jobs when I was 16 were working fast food (on a rapid decline these days due to the economy, wages, etc), or cleaning pools, mowing lawns, etc...I would prefer to see an education system which students advance through subjects via mastery via testing/assessments given...once you…
For those who would like more information:
Teen unemployment varies widely across Europe, with recent data showing rates in September 2025 of about 14.8% in the EU and 14.4% in the euro area. Spain has one of the highest rates at 25%, while Switzerland has one of the lowest at 3.1%. Other countries with high rates include Sweden (24.6%) and Italy (20.6%), whereas Germany has a rate of 6.7%.
Key statistics
European Union (EU): 14.8% (September 2025)
Euro area: 14.4% (September 2025)
Highest rates: Spain (25%) and Sweden (24.6%)
Lowest rates: Switzerland (3.1%) and Germany (6.7%)
Compared to the U.S.
The overall youth unemployment rate for those aged 16-24 in the US was 10.4% in September 2025. This is a…
Well, we've had more than 50 years of every kid, starting at age 5, being subjected to 12+ years of constant denigration of those who build, solve, or repair things. The teachers, then professors, denigrated producing things rather than words.
It's not new,