“Very few employers want to give up the time and expense of training an employee who will disappear after Labor Day.”
Granted not available in every area, but in many the trick is to look for those hiring seasonally - like the Italian ice place, the ice cream stand, landscaping crews, painting crews, summer camps both sleepaway and day camp programs, mother’s helper during the summer, lifeguarding, gardening store, local farm or garden, etc. In my area they hire both college and high school students. College students get out earlier so can handle Memorial Day and June needs. High school kids can stick around to cover all or most of August and potentially some part-time shifts into the school year.
My kids had much more success with local, independently owned businesses than they did with applying to chains.
Big problem in my area of central Massachusetts. 75 applications for three slots at the local ice cream shop. Most retail, restaurants etc want employees who are going to be working yeat round and not heading off to college soon. We don’t live in a particular touristy area so there’s nothing that comes up just for summer. I also agree with the comment that most places want someone 18 years or older.
I’m not sure if this is necessarily anything new in the last 30 years. I grew up in central Maine and again not in a tourist type area. Finding summer jobs was next to impossible.
I agree that having a job as a teenager teaches responsibilitiy but when my kids are taking all honors classes and doing sports till 630 at night it leaves very little room to be holding down a job. We teach school comes first.
Our family’s beliefs have been it’s better to use that time in one’s life to focus on school/ECs and squeeze in some much needed vacation. Obviously not everyone is in the same financial position, but kids have 40-50 years ahead of them to work, it’s ok to skip min wage for 4 of them to spend time with the family.
Everyone around here would love a permanent employee. But they will take a HS kid for a job that doesn’t require much training because they don’t have much choice. There aren’t necessarily a ton of high paying things around here, but the labor market overall is super tight. I have a couple of friends with businesses that are pretty much permanently trying to hire for $15/hour jobs in a low cost of living area. One of them told me “If they can pass a drug test and look like there is a better than average chance they will actually show up on Monday morning, I hire them on the spot.” Just not enough people available and willing to do jobs that require a decent amount of manual labor and getting dirty. So a HS kid willing to do so can get a job around here.
The problem my kids have with a regular job is that they are just so busy. And they (and me) aren’t willing to give up activities that I am hoping will pay off down the road for a current paycheck. The oldest boy found a place that he can work pretty much whenever he wants but they don’t require any minimum commitment from him. So he ends up working occasional weekends during the school year and then most of the summer. But if he wants a day here or week there they don’t really care. They pretty much have him doing the things that need done at some point but not immediately and that the permanent employees never have time to get to. His younger brother has a couple of things where there are several employees that can sign up for evening and weekend work mostly during the summer. So he can work when he is around but they don’t care if he works 5 hours this summer or 500.
@doschicos- Our extended family is spread out all over the country so we try to get them a few visits in as well as take a week or so of nuclear family vacation someplace fun.
Other than that, not much. I don’t believe in year-round school, and think it’s good for kids to have some unscheduled un-helicoptered free time.
We worked hard for many, many years to get to where we are. We can afford this small luxury.
Probably depends a lot on the area. Forum demographics here skew heavily toward the “upper middle class who will not get financial aid” (i.e. top 3% or so income/wealth), so many live in areas with strong local economies that include job openings in retail, food service, recreation, etc. that are suitable for high school students on summer break.
But it may be different in areas with weaker local economies, where what jobs that are available (even “low end” ones) tend to be filled by older adults who may not have many job opportunities otherwise, leaving little opportunity for high school students on summer break.
I wish I had known that lifeguard jobs were plentiful as they are around here because my kids never learned to swim well enough to pass the test. They do swim, but I wish i would have pushed them further in lessons.
S17 didn’t have a paid job in HS. His summers were spent on various research activities (plus a college class one summer). He spent 40+ hours/week doing research all 3 HS summers. A professor he worked with offered to pay him his rising senior summer, but he got accepted to a selective research program out of town.
He now has a job at college as a waiter for a few hours a week. And, he will do paid research this summer. I don’t think not working a paid job during HS hurt his work ethic.
S21 is just starting a 3-year program that will include paid museum work.
@Ynotgo Sounds like your son was working, just not collecting a paycheck. As long as my kids were meaningfully engaged whether it was a paid job, volunteer work, research, or in my kids’ cases a few summers full grants for study abroad, I was okay with it. I would not be okay with them just hanging out all summer. Everyone needs some downtime but my kids had 12-13 weeks of summer and that is too much just hanging out by my standards and even theirs.
DD had a part time job since she was 16. She was working remotely for a media company. Since we both work full time and it is impossible to navigate our large city without reliable public transportation it was always a problem for any other type of job. She has been having paid internships every winter/ summer break in college and remote job in between.
Just saw a social media post of a guy who runs a landscaping business in my area. He pays $20/hour and having a hard time finding enough workers this summer.
Not easy here. We’re a seasonal economy where the population drops by half over the summer. Businesses close on certain days, reduce their hours and lay off staff during the summer.
“Parents are saying there are other things you can do over the summer that will create value for you … and you don’t have to go flip burgers.”
Having a job flipping burgers is NOBLE work. I was a parent who worried that my kids would be too busy with school to find time for what I felt were the invaluable lessons a part time job would teach them. Fortunately that was not a problem. Some of the best conversations we have had (and the most heated) have been around their jobs. Think #metoo and the value of teaching them while they are still young and in a workplace about the dangers of predatory jerks. About how to make the mundane fun as my one daughter told her sibling to “make the cotton candy so it looks like Marge Simpson’s hair” or showing up and smiling at a customer who may be on the ropes and then receiving a nice big fat tip as a thank you. I chose a gritty workplace for my kid’s classroom of lessons instead of writing a check for an expensive group Voluntourism trip of sorts and I’m okay with that.
My definition of young “work” is loose, too. I hoped they’d do something that, for the experience, could lead to another job and another. And the first thing they did was unpaid, at the local bookshop. They got references from that. They did a lot of community service, too, and one of those adults was another reference.
Eventually one worked in a pizza joint (made surprisingly good tips,) til they decided they misunderstood the liquor serving laws, lol. Eventually, lifeguard jobs, then day camp lifeguards (surprisingly good pay, but very long hours.)
This unpaid work wasn’t a matter of we could afford it. It was our feeling you start somewhere, show up on time, meet expectations. That can be done vol’ing a few regular hours at the library most summer weeks or similar places where funds are tight.
Exactly one of their friends was also a lifeguard at the comm center. One was also at the camp, not for lack of openings at either job.
My husband and I are both in the belief that jobs build character, and a value for money. Both our kids started working as soon as they were able (at 15 here as lifeguards). I personally think everyone should have a job once in the service industry…just my own belief. Anyway…
Luckily lifeguard jobs in our area are plentiful - if a kid has the certification, he/she should have no problem getting a job - both indoor and outdoor. So S18 works about 5 hours during his HS sports season and is now at 17. He picks up private lessons which garner a lot more $. He balances that with his club sport practices - it’s a crazy schedule, but he likes making $. As long as the grades stay where they need to, we support his choice.
For both of our kids (and mom), guarding is a great way to earn some cash and if you’re lucky to be at the right place, make some great connections. You never know who the parents know whose kids you’re teaching lessons to (life lesson from 1990 right there…).
This summer he’ll be full-time again at a local country club. Pays for his own gas, phone, repairs to the car, his crazy Starbucks Strawberry Acai habit…oh, and that Taylor Swift concert ticket he got .
Another benefit to getting paying jobs - even if you have to help fund it, if you can afford to do so, your kids can start funding IRAs/Roths super early, building those retirement accounts and learning some basic investment knowledge along the way.
I do wish every teenager who wanted a job was able to have the experience.
Colleges are putting lots of emphasis on volunteering which I think is one of the reasons you see less teens working. I personally think its too much emphasis at the expense of employment. I pushed my kids to have jobs and thus far I believe it has been very beneficial in so many regards.
