US teens struggling to find work

Felicia says she's lucky to have found a job through Obama's scheme

Barack Obama was elected on 4 November 2008 after a campaign that promised change.

One year on, Newsbeat's travelled across the country to find out how people feel in Obama's America.

In the first of five reports, Jonathan Blake travels to Tennessee where unemployment is highest among young people to see how he's trying to fix the economy.

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In this small town in the state with the highest level of unemployment among young people in the US, Felicia Gaskins is one of the lucky ones.

The 17-year-old from Murfreesboro, Tennessee got a job paid for by President Barack Obama's stimulus plan.

She spent the summer working at the Discovery Centre, a hands on museum for children.

"I worked with the kids, interacted with the kids and just got a really good experience out of it," she said.

She admits it would have been hard to find work without it.

"I wouldn't have been able to find a job. Sitting at home watching TV, that's probably it," she said.

Few jobs

According to The White House 640,329 jobs have been created by $500 billion (£305 billion) worth of government grants and loans.

But the plan has been criticised by politicians and others for not getting results fast enough, with unemployment at 9.8%.

Drop into the local career centre and there is plenty of evidence of just how bad the problem is.

The foyer is busy with people scanning the notice boards, flicking through lists of jobs and filling out forms.

Single mum Chrystal Gonzalez, 29, told Newsbeat she was struggling to get by.

"I have no income right now whatsoever. That's why I'm here, it's the first time I've been in this office," she said.

She has 11 years experience in law enforcement but is looking for anything she can get to pay the bills.

She said: "There are some jobs but it's barely enough to make it by. I don't know that I'm going to be able to take care of things like I need to."

Laid off

Government figures show 26% of 16 to 19-year-olds are unemployed in Tennessee, and nationally more teenagers are out of work than ever.

Many have been recently laid off as businesses like the Five Senses restaurant in Murfreesboro take drastic action to survive.

Restaurant Manager Jennifer Nevin says they have already had to close one of their premises.

She said: "As our business dropped we'd look around and see everyone else's business was dropping as well, so we just couldn't get the people in to keep our heads above water."

She explains they are trying new tactics to get customers through the door.

"We're offering more coupons, discounts and specials throughout the week," she added.

There are signs that the country is recovering, however slowly.

Murfreesboro career centre is crowded with people looking for work

In October, official figures showed the US economy grew at an annual pace of 3.5% between July and September.

That news was given a cautious welcome by the president who said the US was still "a long way" from recovering from the downturn.

But if the economy is recovering, it is hard to find any evidence of it in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Matt Miles, 22, is hanging out with his friends at the Stones River Mall.

He spent four months looking for a job when he started college and is not convinced Barack Obama's stimulus plan is working.

He said: "It sounds like a very good idea and it may well be working. It's just there's nothing I've noticed so far."

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