The 2008 recession was far worse for young people's careers than previously thought

Summary: The Great Recession of 2008 crushed the millennial generation’s career aspirations. The labor market for both college and high school graduates wasn’t pretty. In September 2008, young workers faced an unemployment rate of 9.9%, compared to 5.6% for all workers, according to the New York Fed. By May 2010, even as the stock market had recovered, young workers aged 22 to 27 without a bachelor's degree saw unemployment at 15.7%. Even college graduates had an unlucky unemployment rate of 6.8%.