I think there are a couple of different schools (pun intended) of thought on this....
On one hand, the "xBox" comment is warranted. There are plenty of entitled kids who aen't much interested in working. That being said, there are more opportunities for young people now than there were when I was in high school.
8 years ago, I took the Electrical Foundations program at my local college, (where I now work) after being laid off from my construction job. There were students in that class taking the course through a high school program, that allowed them to take the course (paid for with school board funds) as an elective, with credits towards graduation and a foot in the door for an apprenticeship in the field. (There were also Plumbing, Carpentry, Welding and Culinary Arts electives available for qualifying students)
I know I would have killed for such an opportunity back in 1979, but such programs didn't exist back in those days.