Summer jobs for teens, a good thing?

our kids cant get a job all the mexicans took them away from the kids

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My eighteen year-old daughter just graduated from high school. She didn't work at. I felt it was most important to concentrate on her school studies. She was taking honor & AP classes all through her high school years. She didn't have time to work anyway, because she was always studying. Because of her dedication to her school work, she has maintained a 3.6 GPA and has received some academic awards. She has been accepted to a great private undergraduate university this fall and she wants to work some while in college. We also took a lot of trips during the summer months with our family. I have no regrets

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I am all for concentrating on your studies and doing volunteer work during the school year. Both my daughters babysit weekends as regularly as they can for disposable income--I contribute only $5 when they go out with friends--they have to come up with rest. The seventeen year old is headed off to college in the fall and has her first full-time working experience this summer--should be interesting since it is with the same fast food chain I started out working with 30 years ago. One summer/year of that and I knew I'd never go back--but I learned a lot of life's little lessons and I hope she will too. College is too late to learn about the basic connection between work, money and how fast $$$ flies out of your wallet. I am paying for college but expect the girls to purchase books and earn their spending money. My own parents did me the same favor back in the day and I'm glad for their lessons in frugality and practicality.

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YES, teenagers should work, especially if they're lazy in school! It's a great eyeopener and makes them realize that hard work sucks and that an education is the key to having a good career and a great income! They will appreciate school and how easy it actually is.

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ABSOLUTELY teens should have to experience what it is to have a job. The problem with kids today is they are all over indulged, and feel like they are entitled to things just being handed to them. My son is 15, and will work part time this summer to learn that money does not grow on trees, and if you want to buy certain things you need to work for them. I think it is funny that some of these people state that they were to concentrate on their school work and not have to be bothered with working. I worked part time from the age of 14, got honors in school and learned a strong work ethic. It amazes me to see college kids who have never had some type of job. That is unrealistic, and is only setting them up for failure later in life. I think we as a society need to revamp our thinking in whole.

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I worked meaningless summer jobs as waitress or short order cook and realized from those that I did not want to be trapped in that for my lifetime. I saved, and did not buy too much junk. My kids - now 25 and 17, with the youngest starting college in the fall (and working at the same university this summer) and the oldest in a graduate program - have worked but took up the philosophy of saving. Their work now is geared toward what they want to do. I wanted them to work but no more than enough to keep them busy; their job was their education. I can give that to them, and they have gotten from their assorted jobs the same impression I did long ago - do what you can to not get stuck in something boring.

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I worked in between high school and college and made a good salary for an 18 year old. I saved up just about everything I made because I was going to college the next year. The money that I did spend was on lunch and gas, and my parents paid for insurance and other things. It was a great choice to work because I ended up living off the money that I made in three months over the course of 2 and a half years in college (tuition, books, food). I had other scholarships too but it was nice to pay what was left over from the scholarships with my money instead of having to beg my parents to pay for it or get a loan. I never worked during high school, I didn't really have time. I went to summer school to get some classes over with (bs electives) and hung out at home. If I didn't go to summer school, I think it would have been nice to have some type of a job, but if that was to happen I would have saved 80% of the money I was making for later in life.

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I had my first job at 16; the job itself taught me nothing ( I was already a responsible person). There were wonderful people there who taught me important lessons. Taking the initiative, for example. The negative for me was, I wasn't a motivated student therefor, making money, working, was more important than my homework, education in general.

For my children, I believe that working is important but I will put limits, say 15-2o hrs a week and I will want them to learn how to invest there money. We will research it together.
They will understand that education is much more important to there future than there high school job.

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I think a summer job is a very good life skills education and how to play the game of life. It teaches you to show respect to your customer and your boss, even if they don't deserve it. As a grownup with a career, you then give respect to your customer and your boss. It teaches you time management, working with others, responsibility to others, managing money, communication skills, and tons of other skills that you can't learn at home.

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I was not 16 until I was a second semester jr. in high school so only babysat for neighbor's. As oldest of 5 I had good experience. I also had a small job keeping track of sales calls of those who worked for my father and that went through the year. When I was in college, still living at home, I also had a part time job with the foreign language dept., typing exams, etc.

Our kids when teens similarly had various part time jobs but did not work full time until out of college. It semed to be a good experience for all of us. We all need to realize before we get to be completely on our own the reality that money does not grow on trees, even if it is paper! CGM

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I have raised seven children and all have been required to buy their own car, pay for their own insurance, and gas. They also have paid for their own college education. My son is now 31yrs old with a BA in Business, and has been to Europe twice that he paid for.And now is happy and married with his new born son. My oldest daughter is finishing her BA in Business. They have all grown up to appreciate what they have and know that life isn't free. Unlike my brother who is 48yrs old and is still sponging off my 74yr old mother. My third oldest and her husband have two of my grandchildren and run a business in Northern California. My oldest Step son will soon be starting a career with LADWP. and the last three girls are in sports and will be getting summer jobs if they plan on owning a car and having insurance.

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Well I see most here said they HAD. How about getting a teen's perspective? I AM a teen that has a job...basically year round. My first though was for Summer. It isn't as great as it seems in today's world. Most teens go in all cool thinking they are the best because they have a job and others don't. Well once they get to work they realize that work is NOT fun and they don't want to work. So the few teens that don't mind the labor and actually work, like a true employee, get stuck picking up the slack for those lazy good for nothing ones. This in turn makes that teen more vulnerable to increased work hours (with your consent or not.....most managers see teens as a cheaper work force anyway so we are expendable to them)and limited time to even breath. For instance, when I started my Summer job at a supermarket, I worked no more than 25 hours a week when it was a busy week. By the time I felt overwhelmed by the new school year and work, I took a look to try and schedule some school work time and noticed that somewhere along the line I was working almost 30 hours a week....at one time 31, that was 1 hour more than the labor laws of the state even allow for minors. It was pathetic. The good hard working teens left fast, the lazy ones got fired, and the whole time management just really didn't care about OUR time needs.

All in all, I say if you parents want to teach good money saving skills, don't be lazy and wait until the kid is old enough for employment. Start early with a allowance. Start small and slow give them "pay raises" along the way. If they behave bad give them a dock in pay. That way they have all the time to do school work, volunteer, or whatever they need time for. When the parent controls the kids budget early, they can force them to think creatively on ways to save. Heck I still remember how I would just put my gift money under my clothes so I would forget it's there and not touch it.

My final words are: if you want a job to be the one to teach good saving tactics, you need to re-evaluate your tihnking. Stop this laziness of wanting others to do the teaching. YOU are the parent, you show them the way from the begining. The workforce and school are not daycare centers for the parent to leave their kid and have them learn things the parent should teach. So get to it.

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