Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit! That widespread misunderstanding has been deliberately fostered by the other NRA (National Restaurant Association) to mislead people about the consequences to families and kids and seniors of maintaining abusively low wages in fast food.

What's the truth? I haven't found official data at BLS or the Census (they don't seem to track age), but a number of news organizations recently have cited pretty much the same statistic, within one or two percentage points. Says CBS: "The age of the average worker is 28, with 70 percent 20 years old or older, according to statistics compiled by AOL Jobs" (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505143_162-57600587/fast-food-strikes-underline-big-national-problem/). NBC: "...the Hollywood image of the care-free, freckle-faced, teenage hamburger flipper is no longer the norm. Only 16 percent of fast food industry jobs now go to teens, down from 25 percent a decade ago" (http://inplainsight.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/15/17719586-in-tough-economy-fast-food-workers-grow-old?lite).

Not sure that I totally understand how the victim being 16 years old makes economic exploitation morally acceptable, but in any case, you can no longer argue the cliche that fast food workers are just pimple-faced kids working a summer job. Abusively low wages in fast food hurt parents and children and senior citizens trying to stand on their own two feet, not just 16-year olds subsidized by Daddy.