Which Teens Work - If They Can Find a Job

As summer arrives, the job market for teens seems to be suffering with the rest of the economy. In fact, teens seem to be competing with unemployed adults for work, and the poorest teens find it hardest to get work. Our local paper had a chart from the Department of Labor: Center for Labor Market Studies which showed clearly that white teens (ages 16-19) from families with incomes over $75,000 a year were the most likely to be employed last summer.

In fact, about half of those teens worked compared to less than 30% of Black and Hispanic teens from families with incomes under $60,000 a year. I could not figure this out until a friend pointed out that it is the wealthier teens who have the family and school connections that help them get summer jobs - with colleagues of parents, in parents' offices, at pools where they swim, stables where they ride, stores where they shop, and as counselors where they have attended camps.

Of course, the teens who really need the jobs cannot find them and the teens who do not need to work, but are doing it to build character, college resumes, or savings accounts, can - what was I thinking?

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Labels: Employment, Healthline, Teen Development

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The First Day at Work - for Teens and Parents

For teens, congratulations - you have done it - you have a job and today is the first day! Take a deep breath, be early and enthusiastic. Remember that every person working where you work now had a first day and will understand when you have questions and worries. Do not be shy - ask away. It is better to ask then do things incorrectly. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Be clear with your manager about how many hours you think you can work each week and still get your homework done;
• Ask for the combination of after school and weekend hours that you think will work for you;
• If you work in the food industry, like many teens, ask if you get a free meal each day;
• Ask for a break after four hours;
• If there is a tip jar, ask how the tips get divided each day;
• Know when paydays are, if you have to complete a time sheet, and when the schedule is posted each week; and finally,
• Do not call to ask when you are working the following week - go by and write your schedule down.

Welcome to the world of us working stiffs - enjoy the first paycheck, sense of accomplishment and the freedom that comes with growing up!

For parents, remember that your teen does not know business etiquette and is trying to make a good first impression. The type of job s/he has may also be very different and she may not know when s/he is working until each week starts. Be tolerant when s/he does not ask for a day off knowing a family event or school performance is coming up, do not be critical when they wash dishes for an entire shift, or volunteer to take an extra shift for someone, or do not know the answers to your questions. We have been working for many years and things that seem logical and easy to us make intimidate your teen.

Try to see the world through their eyes - their peers have been working longer, seem more competent, and seem to know exactly what is going on - and your son or daughter does not want to rock the boat. Encouragement and love will go a lot further than pushy and critical - let them learn slowly and make a few mistakes - it will not be the end of the world. Finally, help them be proactive about finding a balance between school, work, family and social time - we all know how hard it can be, and avoiding teenage meltdowns is always a good thing.

Congratulations to you, the parent, too, this is a milestone for you, as well.

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Labor Force Participation for Teens is Only 41%

I for one think it is really important for teenagers to work even a few hours a week. It builds confidence, a work ethic, and with any luck, good communication skills. In addition, teens learn how to juggle competing responsibilities and (again, with luck) time management skills. I hate to sound like an old fuddy-duddy, but learning the value of a dollar, and how to manage money earned, is also important. Obviously, many parents must not agree with me because most teens are not working.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the highest number of 16- to 19-year olds were employed in 1979 (58%) and there has been a mostly downhill trend since then. The labor force participation rate for teens last year was only 41%. One reason for the decrease may be the increasing competition for unskilled jobs as well as low wages and high pressure for college admittance.

It used to be possible to work someplace flipping burgers and put yourself through college, but now tuition is too high and families may be pressuring kids to focus on school, music, and sports in order to win scholarships instead of working. In 2006 the typical earnings of an older teen was less than $200 a week, which might not be a big help with tuition bills, and may be detrimental if the hours leave the youth tired and unable to do well in school.

Although low paying jobs have typically been a good place for teens to find work, high unemployment means older people with more education and experience may be beating teens out of those positions. Teens in high school are also limited as to where they can work (no constructive or driving), how many hours they can work on school days, and during a week, which also makes older workers more appealing.

Despite competition, teens can still find jobs in service and hospitality, sales and office occupations, as lifeguards, and at amusement parks. Teens need support and encouragement when looking for jobs. It is easy to not keep looking when getting turned down - it is hard on their self-confidence. Teens do not realize that managers might be waiting for them to call and show initiative, instead assuming if the store was interested, someone would call the teen.

Here are some steps that might help your teen get a job:

1. Talk with them about jobs they might like to do - shelve books, sell a product they love, work in an industry they hope to be a part of one day, etc...
2. Help them find possible jobs - many of which might not be advertised because managers do not want to get inundated with resumes and applications. Talk to friends, neighbors, colleagues, and walk around local malls or shopping areas with your teen encouraging them to ask for applications at the places they might like to work;
3. Help them complete the applications and build a resume of activities they have done like sports, music, dance, community services, awards received, training completed, etc... to show they stick with things;
   
4. Encourage them to call and talk to the manager a week after they submit the application;
5. If they get an interview, talk with them about the characteristics employers value - honesty, integrity, responsibility, flexibility, enthusiasm - and the types of questions they may get asked;
6. Encourage them to do their best not to be nervous and ask questions during the interview; and finally
   
7. If they do not get the position, encourage them to send a thank you card to the manager for giving them an interview or call and ask why there were not hired, so they learn something for the next interview.

Remember to be supportive and kind all the way through this process. Do not take anything for granted. This is all new to your teen and they may be very uncomfortable being "judged," or even imagining they could be a good employee.

Previous Teen Health 411 posts about teen employment: Finding that First Job; and Teens Who Work may be in Danger.

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Labels: Employment, Healthline, Teen Development

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Finding a First Job as a Teen

So you want a car, insurance, summer camp, college spending money, an expensive pair of shoes, new skis, a class ring, prom tickets, a ski trip, or one of a million other things that might not fit into your family's budget. What is a teen to do?

Sadly, for some teens, the answer is "get a job," which can feel like a seriously rude welcome to adulthood. It can also be scary and deflate a person's self-esteem. The thought of finding available jobs, making a resume, filling in applications, doing interviews, and getting no calls back, or worse, rejections, is a little daunting for most teens. These are not skills people are born with and it takes knowledge most teens do not have, so take a deep breath and ask your parents for a little guidance.

This time of year there are lots of temporary jobs available for the holidays, and there are always open jobs at retail and food stores that require little or no work experience. Do not start by thinking you will have a hard time getting a job - many employers actually like working with teens because they learn quick and can be trained to do most tasks. The important things are that you are neatly groomed, enthusiastic, and appear to have a good work ethic - which means you will be on time, not miss work, and be open to learning and helping whenever you can.

First, look in the paper and on-line for employment opportunities. Read through the types of jobs available and get a sense of what job you might fit well in. Are you organized, good with numbers or people, do you have a skill that someone needs? Those will be the jobs for you. Next, follow the instructions for applying on-line or submitting an application. If you have never worked, maybe you can list volunteer work and a reference outside your family, or a teacher who will say nice things about you. Ask a parent to help with the application and check your spelling.

Once they call you for an interview, be prepared to tell the person or people interviewing you:

• Why you want the job (what skills you will get, or the chance to explore a potential career, not the expensive shoes you want).
• What skills you have that will help you do a great job.
• How much time you can work weekly or monthly.

Remember that teens have to be 14 to work, and child labor laws do not allow people under 18 to work at "hazardous" jobs and limit teens in the following ways:

• If teens are 14-15 years old they can only work up to 3 hours a day and 18 hours a week during the school year, and have to be done working by 7 PM.
• During summer, they can work up to 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week, and have to be done working by 9 PM.
• If teens are 14-15 years old, they may not work before 7 AM.

Before you leave the interview, you could ask when you should hear about the outcome of the interview. After the interview, send an email or thank-you card for the interview and stating that you look forward to hearing from the person. If you do not hear by the deadline, call the person and ask if they have filled the job. Thank them again for the chance to have had an interview. If you are bold, ask them why they did not offer the job to you - you might learn something to help you get the next job.

OK - there are some hints. There are positive aspects to having work experience, too! Having worked in high school looks good on college applications, and helps you develop a resume for when you have to work.

Good luck!

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Teens Who Work May Be in Danger

There was some bad news from research, done with more than 900 teens done at the University of North Carolina, published in the March issue of Pediatrics. The article suggested that teens aged 14 to 18 who work in retail and service jobs during the school year put in an average of 16 hours a week, often at dangerous and unsupervised jobs. Too many and late hours, using dangerous machinery, handling large sums of cash, and serving alcohol were some of the violations of federal child labor laws reported by the teens who participated in the research.

Like I suggested in earlier post about Teens & Work on Teen Health 411, if your teen works, know the laws in your state and help them understand the importance of not doing anything that violates those laws. In addition, parents should be willing to step in if their teen is being asked to violate those laws.

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Teens and Work

I know this may sound a little silly coming from a woman who keeps talking about spending more unstructured time with our teens and preteens, but I think that the never ending pressure to be successful is keeping our kids from having the opportunity to work. Because it seems to be getting harder to get into top notch colleges, teens are being encouraged to do more school work and community service hours in addition to excelling in sports, music, or the arts, and more and more teens are not finding the chance to work, which concerns me. I am not talking about working more than a few hours a week because we know that teens who work more than 20 hours a week tend to be at higher risk for smoking, drinking, and dropping out of school than teens who work just a few hours a week. I am talking about encouraging teens to work a little bit for money they want for extra clothes, entertainment, or big ticket items like cars.

Granted, it is difficult to fit work into the life of a teen that may already be feeling stressed and too busy, but I think work plays an important part in teen health. Work can help teens learn to be responsible, in addition to increasing a teen's self-esteem and sense of competence. Having a job teaches teens the importance of following through, being on time, getting along with co-workers, and managing their time and money.

There are drawbacks, too. Teens tend to get minimum wage jobs in retail or food sales, which require dealing with the public and can have pretty rigorous hours. Of course, parents need to stay connected and know what our teens are being asked to do as well as help them understand their rights as employees. It is all part of learning to be an employee. Parents worried about the condition s teens work in will find the Guide for Parents (listed below under resources) very helpful.

The rules include - you have to be 14 to work in the United States (unless you work for your parents), you ned a work permit if you are under 16, and there are limits on the number of hours you can work if you are under 16, and how late you can work on school days. For example, if you are 14 or 15 you cannot cook, operate power-driven machinery unless it is office machinery, work on a ladder or scaffold, in a warehouse, or doing construction or unloading a truck. If you are under 18 you cannot drive as part of the job, operate power equipment, work in mining, wrecking, demolition, meat-packing, or where there are explosives or any exposure to radiation. If you want to know the laws in your state, the link to Teens & Work below includes a link to the labor departments in different states.

Maybe the key is summer work, which would not interfere with family time or school, but would provide teens the opportunity to explore fields they might be interested in, develop a work ethic, and even start to build a resume. I brought the possibility up with my nearly 15-year old a few weeks ago when we were talking about summer - and she was saying she did not want to do the same camp she has always done, or music lessons, or pretty much any structured activity I could come up with. So, I suggested she consider a summer job, and she looked mortified! Her reaction surprised me so much I asked her when she thought her parents had started working and I realized she did not know that we had both worked through our teen years - I suppose it is the difference between our working class upbringing and the middle class experience we have provided for our children.

Finally, after talking on and off for a few days, she identified her feelings - saying she was very sad - she realized her childhood was drawing to a close and soon new responsibilities would claim her free time. We do not have a plan for the summer, but I expect it will be a combination of unstructured "celebration" of her childhood and some form of work or volunteer experience.

I look forward to some comments from parents who have already experienced this transition!

Resources
Teens & Work
Working Teens Pamphlet from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
Working Teen Guide for Parents

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Labels: Employment

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