Teens looking for summer work are having the toughest time since 1969 with employers only hiring 6,000 16- to 19-year-olds nationwide in May, reports international outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Last year, at the height of the recession, 111,000 teens were brought on for summer work in May.

Challenger said the jobs that normally go to teens may be going to young adults in the 20- to 24-year-old age group. Employers hired 270,000 of these young adults in May. Last year, this age group saw 261,000 jobs disappear in May. Typically they average a net loss of 32,000 jobs. (click on chart to enlarge.)

Teens in California have been having a particularly hard time in finding jobs. In April, 431,000 16- to 19-year-olds were working, down 104,000 from April of 2009 and down from 444,000 in March. Teen unemployment was 34.3% in April. (May job data for California will be released June 18,)

Challenger said teens may have benefited from an early hiring surge this year. Employers hired 296,000 teens from February to April versus 24,000 in an average year.

“Even with the early hiring surge, it appears that the summer job market for teenagers may be far worse than expected. Knowing how competitive the market would be, many teenagers may have tried to get a head start on their job searches, even if it meant picking up hours during the school year. This might explain the spring employment gains,â€