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<middle age alert> When I were a lad.... from the age of about 13/14 pretty much everyone I know had a part time job at weekends and looked for a summer job to earn some cash to spend on bottles of Thunderbird/Bon Jovi cassettes/posters of hunky fellas holding a baby etc.
It doesn't seem to be the case any more, am I right? If so, why is that? Personally I think having a job as a youngster is a good thing as it teaches many valuable life and people skills.
One of the reasons I ask is that I've got stuff I'd like doing around the house that I'd happily pay a teenager to do (like painting railings, masonry painting some walls, the kinda stuff I remember doing and being paid for as a kid) but I'm not sure any of today's yoofs would be interested.
All the older teenagers I know have part-time jobs (ie, 16+ rather than 13-14).
My daughter isn't interested in a part time job. My son worked at a restaurant part time whilst at college. I was a paperboy from about 12 to 16, up and out at 6am, all weathers.
My daughter isn’t interested in a part time job.
What does she do for money?
One of the reasons I ask is that I’ve got stuff I’d like doing around the house that I’d happily pay a teenager to do (like painting railings, masonry painting some walls, the kinda stuff I remember doing and being paid for as a kid) but I’m not sure any of today’s yoofs would be interested.
You seem to be under the impression that today's kids know one end of a brush from another!! 🙂
But, yes - proper jobs are great for kids. My daughter did waiting on from 15 and it changed the way she dealt with people completely.
Would I pay cash-in-hand to any random kid to do work around the house - now way. It would have to be a relative or child of friends I knew really well.
15 yr old lad worked all last summer dry-stone walling, 70 notes a day cash in hand, did look right hard graft though. 7am-4.30pm.
It doesn’t seem to be the case any more, am I right?
No, you're most definitely wrong
All the older teenagers I know have part-time jobs (ie, 16+ rather than 13-14).
Yep. My experience too. My daughter got a job waiting on in a local restaurant when she was 15/16. She's presently on a year out before going to Uni and is working full time at a supermarket and has been saving up and she's off round Europe in 2 weeks time for the summer. All flights, trains and accommodation booked and paid for.
When she was 16 and working, all her mates the same age all had jobs in local shops, bars and restaurants at weekends. All our mates kids in that age group now are all doing the same. I don't know a single one of them who isn't working.
Its a lot harder to employ 16-18 yearolds now. And even worse for U16.
I imagine for 13-14 yearolds most of it is
"Would I pay cash-in-hand to any random kid to do work around the house – now way. It would have to be a relative or child of friends I knew really well."
based on this.
And the kids won't call this sort of thing a job, they'll call it a side hustle.
Why wait till teenagers, we have several chimneys which would be suitable for 6-7 year olds....
I've recruited a fair few young uns just out of uni in the past couple of years, and I have been shocked by the complete lack of work experience they had. By the time I was out of uni I'd had multiple jobs over the years, often many at once, and I came from a pretty wealthy family so it wasn't like I needed to work. Seems like a newer trend as everyone I'd interviewed in years gone by had a pretty solid base of bar work, retail, etc but it definitely feels like less of a thing nowadays.
And the kids won’t call this sort of thing a job, they’ll call it a side hustle.
What would their 'main hustle' be though?
but it definitely feels like less of a thing nowadays.
It's still very much a thing - all my daughters friends had jobs.
Her two best friends have funded a 6 month trip to Australia by working several waiting-on jobs. Mainly at Waga's as apparently the pay is good! 🙂
Eldest had a paper round 5 days a week from 14-18, helped out at music centre for an hour on a Saturday for the same period, and started getting paid gigs just before lockdown, though other than a couple of mates with paper rounds, not many of his peers did.
Daughter now does his music centre Saturday job and does paid coaching at her gym club Monday and Friday evening. Quote a few of her friends work in cafes.
What I would say is his first summer home from uni hevworked in a local bread factory. He hated it. But when he applied for an internship with PWC they really focused in on his people skills and thoughts on processes at the factory, so these things do pay off.
My daughter isn’t interested in a part time job.
What does she do for money?
I guess some people just aren't that bothered. I had Saturday jobs and paper rounds all through my teens - I wanted to buy a bike, then later CDs and computer games, and eventually, booze.
My brother never really bothered. There wasn't anything he really wanted to buy. £2 a week pocket money was enough for a few chocolate bars or whatever, and that was enough for him.
One of the reasons I ask is that I’ve got stuff I’d like doing around the house that I’d happily pay a teenager to do (like painting railings, masonry painting some walls, the kinda stuff I remember doing and being paid for as a kid) but I’m not sure any of today’s yoofs would be interested.
Depends, there's legalities to consider about employing <16's. The ones I know would probably have done (or did) it though.
>16, in the current jobs market where every shop/cafe seems to have a vacancy sign I'd assume any that any that want jobs probably have one.
his first summer home from uni he worked in a local bread factory
Kneads must
Its worth adding that the minimum wage that employers get away with paying 16 year olds is an absolute ****ing scandal!
I've just had a look on the government website and its £5.28 an hour for under 18's. That not far short of slavery
Kneads must
🤣
You seem to be under the impression that today’s kids know one end of a brush from another!! 🙂
If you brought your kids up like this, look in the mirror - mine did and do.
Always winds me up when folk say stuff like this!
Its a lot harder to employ 16-18 year olds now. And even worse for U16.
This, 100% and automated payrolls, lack of petty cash etc.
My daughter (14) got her first holiday/Saturday job recently.
So far it has been fantastic for her on a few levels:
1. Given her some confidence as hundreds applied.
2. Given her a new set of friends to dilute out some of the less desirable stuff with her school friends.
3. Given her another activity to look forwards to.
4. Given her £200 in her sky rocket to put towards a thing in the summer that my wife and I said we would half fund if she paid the rest.
The other day she let out a loud 'Yes!' which is not a regular occurrence. When I asked why, she said she has got five shifts over the crazy number of BHs and weekends in May.
We're definitely viewing it as a good thing in the round.
Fair enough, I'm glad to be proven wrong.
Would I pay cash-in-hand to any random kid to do work around the house – now way. It would have to be a relative or child of friends I knew really well.”
Well, yeah, I was kinda thinking the same, asking folks I know through various local groups if they have any kids that would be interested.
Its worth adding that the minimum wage that employers get away with paying 16 year olds is an absolute ****ing scandal!
I’ve just had a look on the government website and its £5.28 an hour for under 18’s. That not far short of slavery
Absolutely. I'm quite happy to pay someone a tenner an hour if they work hard and crack on.
You seem to be under the impression that today’s kids know one end of a brush from another!!
They'll learn (which, again, is all part of it).
Its worth adding that the minimum wage that employers get away with paying 16 year olds is an absolute ****ing scandal!
I’ve just had a look on the government website and its £5.28 an hour for under 18’s. That not far short of slavery
I remember being on both sides of that at 16-18.
Had a Sunday job that paid £4.20/hour, and that included £1 extra because it was Sunday!
Then got work experience placement, which became a summer job where the manager said on day 1 he didn't believe in free work experience and refused to pay any less than the adult minimum wage, which at 17, working 7 hours a day, 5 days a week is suddenly a lot!
his first summer home from uni he worked in a local bread factory
Kneads must
Full or part-time roll?
Daughter is at Uni, so get's a small maintenance grant and what I give her each month - she goes to a local Uni, so isn't incurring the extra costs. Her course is quite coursework based, so there is loads of work to do outside of Uni hours, especially if she wants the grades (Digital Animation).
Full or part-time roll?
and did he like the work, or did he have a bit of a cob on?
Eldest is 16, she works as lifeguard and sometimes reception at the council leisure centre including some very unsociable shifts. Her disposable income is more than mine!
Youngest is 15. She wants a job but has to be 16 to get a job with a large employer. She's applied to small coffee shops but not been successful yet
Youngest is 15. She wants a job but has to be 16 to get a job with a large employer. She’s applied to small coffee shops but not been successful yet
Does she want to do some painting...
Full or part-time roll?
and did he like the work, or did he have a bit of a cob on?
He thought it was a PITA most of the time.
The other day she let out a loud ‘Yes!’ which is not a regular occurrence. When I asked why, she said she has got five shifts over the crazy number of BHs and weekends in May.
My godson is in Year 13, works at a food place at Trafford Centre - since getting the job (which has been great for him, being dyslexic and struggled socially and academically as a result) he's packed up his beloved rugby playing in order to take on extra shifts. Suspect a lot of his pay goes in the club bar, but he's properly matured this last year.
his first summer home from uni he worked in a local bread factory
At yeast he's grainfully employed.
. It doesn’t seem to be the case any more, am I right?
No. My eldest has little jobs from 14. My youngest is not so I interested as her cricket takes up a lot of her weekends and some evenings. I’d rather she do that as she’ll be working for about 50 years after leaving school.
Not every kid has jobs when I was a teenager either. Nothing has changed.
Ohh, and one of my daughters works every Saturday (with a 7.30am start until mid-afternoon) and has been doing it since she was 12 - she's almost 14 now. She mucks out horses, gets their hey nets, turns them out, and sometimes she leads younger kids (as in walks with them holding the reins if the parents won't do it). All for the princely sum of £0.00 a day. I do feel the owners of the stables are taking the piss a bit, but she wants to study equestrian studies at college so it is a good experience, she usually gets a free ride as a thank you and it keeps her in the good books of her tutors as she could end up back there once she gets to college. And it is also teaching her the art of putting a hard shift in.
I think 13-14 is too young, can't she wait until 16.
Our problem is not so much the willingness/interest of teens for work (although this is an issue) but the actual availability of any suitable vacancies. We stay just outside a small village in Aberdeenshire, 10 miles from the nearest small market town with no public transport. One of our teens tried a job at the chippy in the town for a while but this involved us in transport which took 45 minutes and 20 miles in the car possibly twice for each shift. It stopped when they were asked to increase from 2 shifts a week to 5.
They have now applied for another job at a hotel 15 miles away. If they get it I'm not sure how we will manage to support it. But I don't want to discourage them from working.
All of our 3 kids have had part time jobs.
Youngest (18) currently working part-time as a swimming instructor for the local authority.
Pay is £15 per hour, which equates to £30k if she was doing it full time, the mind boggles!
It's been good for her, certainly has improved her confidence in talking to people.
I live in a town with about 15K people and it feels like about a dozen cafes/restaurants as well as loads of pubs. Have teenage children who have lots of other teenage friends. Under 16, with the exception of paper rounds, the only people who have got jobs are people who know/related to the owner of a cafe. To be honest they are treated pretty badly (all the worst bits of zero hours contracts from what I see). Although I think the minimum wage is higher than what I earned at 18-19+ inflation!
16+ more of them start to get work.
One thing which I have realised since my son went to uni is that lots of hospitality jobs which us students used to fill over the summer staying in some ropey tied accommodation has become a problem as the jobs still exist but the tied accommodation has become Air BnBs etc!
For fence painting etc - the 'elf and safety and safeguarding issues probably mean a company employing <18s is not possible, but as an individual if you know a trustworthy teenager (or teenager's parents) you could easily cross their palms with £20 notes, and provide materials etc. Even a good one probably needs some supervision though to make sure they don't get paint on next doors car/cat etc... There were some very smart students here pre-covid who each summer came back, posted on the local facebook groups etc in late May that they would be doing garden work and then spent the time to Sept fighting off people wanting grass/hedges cut, fences painted etc. Three mates working as a mini team and having a laugh whilst raking it in, and I'm sure gained some really good entrepreneurial experience too.
Depends on the kids doesnt it?
Both of mine were content to be broke until they got to college and the social life kicked off. In September my daughter will have saved 15k in her year out for uni as well as buying her own car, getting out to see her friends that started last year and generally having a life.
My boy is still in 1st year at college and is just begining to realise that microsoft Xbox all weekend doesnt leave him with anything to spend.
I teach 16-18 year olds plenty take on paid work.
My best tip for paying for uni is tutoring
One girl worked for a company teaching GCSE science and maths whilst doing A-levels. When she went to Uni they transferred her to the branch near the Uni
Another girl has set up an online tutoring company with a mate. She may only does 7 hours a week but at £25 an hour she’s earnt more in week than the folks in her flat who 20 hours in Costa. Plus she has no travel time
One of our teens tried a job at the chippy in the town for a while but this involved us in transport which took 45 minutes and 20 miles in the car possibly twice for each shift. It stopped when they were asked to increase from 2 shifts a week to 5.
I was going to ask if your teen has a bike.
But that seems like the sort of distance where the ROI would need some review.
Are 19 year olds still classed as teenagers (well actually she'll be 20 next week)? Daughter no. 2 has no interest in getting summer job. She's in her second year at uni. Comes home in the summer months and spends all day in bed, then F**** off with her mates until the clubs throw her out.. Not looking forward to this summer.
Getting a bit boomerish in here these days 😂
It's a different world now, as many say, under 16s getting a job is nigh on impossible, when i were a lad i had the two paper rounds, one just before i was 13 and the other just after, when 13 was the minimum age, stacked shelves in a supermarket at 14, did dishwasher in a restaurant at 15, but these are all jobs that aren't open to under 16s now, bar paper rounds and they're few and far between compared to the 80s and 90s, i haven't seen a milk float or a corona pop lorry in a while!
Reality is that they're not used to working under 16 as it's just not practical for most, and of course i'm not even sure how safeguarding checks come into it for a lot of them, as for odd jobs, that's a whole host of problems, i wouldn't want my daughter hunting round strangers for bit part work at their house, same with any child coming into our house that's not known!
Full or part-time roll?
part time wouldn't fund the lavash lifestyle so many kids have these days
Why wait till teenagers, we have several chimneys which would be suitable for 6-7 year olds…
That’ll be legal in America soon, pray the Tories don’t get ideas and try to follow suit…
She has a bike but I don't think she would ride that distance, it would probably take over an hour each way. It would also be along the A97, which I wouldn't be happy riding, let alone her.
My eldest has worked on a pub as kitchen porter, worked on building sites doing labouring and last year worked all summer putting up tepees for an events company.
Middle child has worked at stables , helped out at summer kids club, done baby sitting and has taken on her older brother’s kitchen job now he’s gone to Uni.
Youngest is only 16 so is limited to what she can do but has helped out at stables and dies babysitting.
Pretty pleased that they earn their own money and as a result have respect for it and are careful with it.
and did he like the work, or did he have a bit of a cob on?
Probably just got on with it, I mean everybody has to earn a crust.
All three of mine have done paper rounds since the day they were 13.
They've also worked at local Hilton hotel, two in the Covid Test centre, one now at Gleneagles (townhouse and Auchterader) as well as Deliveroo, another bakes in Tesco, and the last one is hunting a hotel job in NZ for September....
They love the money and independence, they are making friends and socialising through work. They've learned determination, new skills, met a really eye opening range of people etc etc.
I would say there's a real split in thier friends: maybe a third just have the bank of parents fund them and have never worked, the other two thirds all work.
I can’t get local adults to do a days work around here.
Even mates on the bread line won’t come and graft for me at £250 a day! By graft I mean help me lay a new chipboard floor.
I’ve paid my own way since the age of 12, when I started a paper road in a small village in Sussex later supplemented by a Saturday gardening job.
Although I suspect I was suitable blinkered from any “dodgy” adult activity, I wouldn’t have my 14yo wandering the streets of London or at a strange premises on his own these days. He has plenty of sports activity to occupy his time but we have a chore based principle for earning money and teach both kids about saving and spending and finances (cue recent conversation and illustration of compound interest) through thier earnings.
When he’s 16 I’ll be helping him with a Saturday job, which for most the default seems to be stint at one of the local large retail stores. He’s happy with the principle as he recognises this is how he’ll be saving for Driving lessons.
Aberporth, Ceredigion, west wales.
Yes I am! Although I’ve resigned myself to taking a couple of days off work and doing it myself.
I blame the teenagers! 😁
I can’t get local adults to do a days work around here.
Even mates on the bread line won’t come and graft for me at £250 a day! By graft I mean help me lay a new chipboard floor.
Where are you mintyjim - I can send you three strapping lads eager to earn that money...
I agree its a damn shame i cant get a kid to do some slave labor. Ive got hours and hours of very hard graft id be happy to pay someone a fiver for.
The problem with trying to get them to paint your banisters is that they will make far more money selling drugs.
You'd have to pay them a fortune.
The horse riding stables is a weird one, I don’t really know how they get away with it. I’ve seen this with my kids. Passionate young people who love their hobby being asked to do menial tasks like mucking out under the banner of ‘stable craft’.
It’s like paying for some MTB tuition that includes bike hire and at the end of the session they say ‘ok, time to degrease the drivetrain’. And doing it every single week.
Yes, I too used to spend all my weekends at the local stables, mucking out, saddle soaping the tack, general help with leading beginner riders, all for the love of horses.
Nettles - I asked a lady I know, her son maybe interested, a nice lad.
There are lads out there in their twenties that don't actually want to work and no amount of despair and threatening, fighting talk from their parents (my friends) can change this.
The horse riding stables is a weird one, I don’t really know how they get away with it. I’ve seen this with my kids. Passionate young people who love their hobby being asked to do menial tasks like mucking out under the banner of ‘stable craft’.
It does weed out the 'pony patters' from the serious horse owners though! A lot of kids can't deal with the mucky side and sheer hard work of horse ownership - 90% of it is menial tasks. And soon realise they really don't want a pony - and thus saving their fortunate parents £1000s! 🙂
My daughter was the opposite - she did the mucky stuff at weekends at a local stables in exchange for riding lessons.
She also quit her A-levels during Covid and found an apprenticeship place with an ex. Olympic medal winning rider. And is now working for her full time.
The pay is shit, the hours are horrendous - often up at 3am to get horses ready for an event then not back till 11pm, but... she gets accommodation in a nice cottage, stabling and feed for her horse, transport all over the country to compete, riding lessons from one of the best and she's learning the difficulties of running a professional stable yard. There's so much more to it than shovelling shit (although she does an awful lot of that!). She bloody loves it though.
She'll probably do her HGV test in the near future too so she can drive the lorry.
So volunteering at a young age isn't a waste of time, at the very least it can teach what you don't want to do.
There's also the tech "working" lad I know makes beats for rappers etc & has done since the age of 13, had stuff on the telly & discs on the wall an all, gets regular royalty payments. Certainly beats me me working on a fruit & veg stall all weathers.
My daughter was the opposite – she did the mucky stuff at weekends at a local stables in exchange for riding lessons.
My cousin did this bitd, worked out the long game & married the polo playing owner...kerching 🤣🤣
Good to hear there is potential light at the end of the cold, dark, dirty tunnel (says dad of a horse-mad 13 yr old having just cleaned the interior of the car for the 10billionth time - mud, straw, horse shit and everything else plastered all over it.
My daughter does - she’s been a qualified swimming teacher since she was 16.
She also teaches a martial arts group in exchange for a more advanced training session for herself.
Good to hear there is potential light at the end of the cold, dark, dirty tunnel
I'm sorry - there is no light at the end of the tunnel it's an all-consuming disease that sucks the money and time from your life - forever!!! 🤣🤣
I have nothing to do with the smelly things!
All of mine have, but finding a decent employer that will emply anyone under 16 is a challenge. And like others have said living in a smallish village them having a job requires getting lifts from us (which they pay for) as there is no public transport.
The rules for employing children are much more restrictive than they were when most of us had part time jobs. See this site for the details, but some issues for under 16s include most jobs being illegal before 14, only being able to work a max of 2 hours on schooldays and Sundays (and only 12 hours per week in total in term time), cant work before 7am or after 7pm, cant work on building sites or in factories and so on.
My kids experience has been varied - some great employers who trained them and put them through basic food hygiene and leadership etc qualifications, paid above minimum wage, gave lifts home late at night...and some terrible ones including a catering one that didnt bother to call us or take 14 year old to hospital when he tipped a large pan of boiling water over his foot. He subsequnetly lost the job as he was unable to stand for a couple of weeks...
Its worth adding that the minimum wage that employers get away with paying 16 year olds is an absolute ****ing scandal!
I’ve just had a look on the government website and its £5.28 an hour for under 18’s. That not far short of slavery
Depends on the job, to a certain extent. My eldest came to work in my office during lockdown, when we needed a lot of help, and complained constantly about not being paid more while doing the same job as her colleagues. Fair comment. Daughter no2 has recently started scooping ice-cream and cleaning tables. Nothing more, no responsibility, no pressure and she's happy with minimum wage.