Land of Opportunity | Video

Alex Hagan | 1/4/2013

You can see the help wanted signs all over. A lot of those signs are for the kinds of jobs filled by high school and college students. North Dakota ranks second in the nation when it comes to such job opportunities, which bodes well for that particular age group.

Businesses such as JL Beers and Pita Pit are constantly busy. And they are looking towards the younger population for help.

"The youngest we can have is 15. It`s mainly juniors and seniors in high school. We do have a few college kids," said Pita Pit General Manager Samantha Lindstedt.

"The staff has been composed of 21 to 25 year olds," said JL Beers General Manager Curt Miller.

North Dakota may be the prime spot for high school and college job seekers. The state is now ranked second in the nation in job opportunities because of a low unemployment rate. Job Service ND says the great economy and a job seekers market benefits ages between 16 and 24.

"Someone who was just in college or just graduated from college looking for something, possibly part-time, to supplement their income while they`re in college," said Michael Ziesch with Job Service.

There are more than 22,000 jobs available, according to Job Service ND. Young job seekers are getting opportunities that they wouldn`t get in other states.

"A lot of companies are looking for that talent pool and they will bring somebody on part-time and evaluate them as a college student," Ziesch said.

In a job seekers market, employers are more flexible in the hiring process. They are able to give the hours the employee needs because workers are hard to come by.

"This type of environment may force an employer to be very creative in their scheduling and very accommodating in the shifts that they offer and so forth," Ziesch said.

"We try to accommodate people schedule to the best of our abilities and work around their schedules," Miller said.

As long as there is a need for more employees in the retail and food industry, businesses will continue to look for younger workers.

"Obviously it`s going to keep rotating. We`re going to keep getting new employees in," Lindstedt said.

"We`re still doing interviews and we`re always looking for people to work here, we`re certainly hiring," Miller said.

The opportunity ranking is determined by a state`s economy, education, and community & civic life. The only state to rank above North Dakota was Vermont.

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