Should 16 year olds get pocket money or get a job?

We won't be able to afford 25 quid a week....

So she really really could do with a job when the time comes.

@DivingForLove
If everyone's grades were affected equally then the impact of everyone working would have been masked.

If few people are working then taking an action likely to lower your grades becomes more risky.

i believe she should get a job
i am sure she would like to get a job

Definitely a job, surprised she doesn’t have one already.

DD 16 works and get 10 euros a week. She gets a clothing allowance and phone, toiletries are covered by me. DD was resistant to getting a job but I did push a little and most of her friends have one. She works 6 hours a week in a local supermarket a 5 minute bike ride away from our house. I think she has learnt some important skills in an environment which is very different to her school and home. DD doesn’t earn much, for me having a job is a life skill and I support her financially during it.

The impracticality of where you live probably makes it very difficult (but not impossible) to have a very part time job.

We're finding it a bit of a minefield since covid. My other kids had Saturday or holiday jobs with fixed hours, they were treated well. No problems.

My youngest is on her second job, the first they kept pressuring her to work late, she'd miss the last bus and I'd have to pick her up. Or they insisted she had to do extra shifts.
Her new job is 3 days a week over the holidays, she has a health issue and more than that is too much. But she has ended up working 5 days and just been told if she doesn't like it, she knows where the door is. They've also threatened her with other stuff, like having to pay back a lot of money for her uniform if she leaves.

We do give her £25 a week and pay for her phone, but it doesn't go very far.

I'd say if you can afford to give them a decent allowance, so they can concentrate on their studies, I'd do that.

My DC had a mixture of both. It worked well as they were able to save some money to go towards uni and gain real world work experience from their part time jobs but did not feel like they had to work excessive hours as they had sufficient pocket money.

I remember having 2-4 hours' homework a night and more at weekends during A levels. I did work (babysitting once a week, then a Saturday morning shop job as well), but I was permanently exhausted, stressed and very depressed. My parents had very little money, so it wasn't that they told me to get jobs, just that they couldn't give me as much pocket money as they would have liked.

Both. Give pocket money as a top up after they get a job.

Still get child benefit and extra money in other benefits to support them (if entitled) if they are still in full time education so I'd give her money.

Agreed @DivingForLove
I have a just 18 DD, she has worked in Nandos, Asda, a theatre since she was 16 as have all her friends. She's off to uni next week, so managed easily to work.
I don't know any teens who haven't worked and only studied, I often wonder if it's the best thing for life to be so concentrated on study and if it has to be,has the person got the aptitude for their studies.
It's only on MN I see this obsession about teens studying.

I’m baffled by the handwringing about teenagers working - when I was a teenager in the late 80s, all my friends had p/t jobs. Didn’t affect our exam grades and meant we all had more spare cash for having fun. What has changed? 🤷‍♀️

This is my view too. I pay 17 year old £15 PW. He is expected to study hard and help around the house which he does. Plenty of time for working later for him. I do realise lots of kids learn lots of skills by working but DS plays sport to a county standard and along with training that takes up a lot of his time.

If you can't afford it, you can't afford it.

If you can, why wouldn't you pay her some pocket money?

Depends how many A levels she is doing. 4 A levels is tough. Pay her for chores around the house. If she wants to get a job I would be okay with that too but keep an eye on A level progress.

My parents went for both. Whilst I was working a part time job they gave me extra money. They didn't like how low paid it was due to the minimum wage laws and knew I was working hard. If I had left my job they'd have stopped what they gave me. I will more than likely do the same

With ours, we carried on with pocket money until the end of August after they turned 18 / finished school.
We had never given them vast amounts of pocket money - they were motivated to go out and find work but I felt taking away pocket money if they get a job doesn't really motivate them.
Work experience is invaluable, but they should feel able to turn down extra shifts, or stop if they need to put more into their academic studies / revision at some point and not end up without any money.

16 is too young nowadays to be working, surely they should be concentrating on their studies and enjoy the last couple of years being a kid , ok young adult. Unless it's a necessity, I don't think it's fair to pressurise them to get a pt job.

Both if you can afford it.
It’s good for her to have a part time job.
But if you can afford it then I would be giving her an allowance. She’s still in full time education. You’ll still be getting child benefit for her.
At 16 I’d still expect parents to be paying for most of a child’s essential needs.

In the long run having experience working is more helpful than having money given to her.

DS (19) has a holiday job when he’s home from uni. It’s at a place that is relevant to his studies which is good. He doesn’t work term time. He didn’t work during 6th form because of covid and everything still getting back to normal from that!!

DD (17) has a Saturday job with the occasional extra shift on bank holidays and busy periods.

Both of them got pocket money (they did jobs for me to earn it).

And of the 5 , 3 of them so far have degrees, 2 are doing their masters , and the 4th starts her paramedics course this year , so they’ve not done too shabbily either.