WASHINGTON - Once a rite of passage to adulthood, summer jobs for teens are disappearing.

Fewer than three in 10 American teenagers now hold jobs such as running cash registers, mowing lawns or busing restaurant tables from June to August. Employment for 16-to-19-year olds has fallen to the lowest level since World War II.

It's partly a cultural shift. More youths are spending summer months in school, at camps or in other activities geared for college. But for others, older workers, immigrants and debt-laden college graduates are taking away lower-skill work.

The figures are based on an analysis of federal data by Northeastern University's Center for Labor Market Studies. They are supplemented with research from Federal Reserve economists, as well as interviews with Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a national job placement firm.