Uni Students finding it hard to get part time jobs because of Covid and people working from home ??

[Charliescar]

My son is back at uni and he says he and his friends are struggling to find part time work and his some of his friends are very worried as their parents cannot afford to help them much with money .

Last year , he said their were lots of jobs , this year hardly any . The students are worried .

I guess so many people are working from home and do not want to return to the office . I think this is another consequence for our younger generation .
I am not sure if we have thought about this .
How do we feel about this ? Are we happy that future generations may not have the opportunity for part time work when studying ? Is this going to deepen the class divide ?

I completely agree with how tough it is for graduates this year. Quick suggestion for anyone who might be searching: I know three summer graduates from different courses (biomedical, philosophy and history) who have all receive offers in the past month for COVID-19 related lab work, diagnostics etc.

Not necessarily a job for life, but it gives them some income for now when the job market is a mess. I thought it was interesting how labs appear to not be as bothered about applicants having a science background. In the nicest possible way I expect they are probably eager to employ as many people as possible right now. Might be something to look at as (we all hope) testing starts ramping up again over Autumn? (We're south east based by the way)

Phrased badly- I definitely don't hope for more infections, just enough tests for anyone who requires one!

The answer isn't to go back to where we were, wasting massive resources on travel, offices and unnecessary spending. We all need to adapt and find a new way to be
Exactly!
You can't blame office workers for not wanting a commute (gain of time but also ££ in travel tickets). So yes, less available jobs at Starbucks or Pret but I imagine Amazon/Deliveroo/Ocado are looking to recruit as their trade is booming?

Some of these town centre type coffee and sandwiches places might need to adapt to having small units in suburban newsagents or similar where you have large numbers of homeworkers happy to pop out during their lunch for fresh air etc.

We used to have a branded Costa machine at work, I think anyway but I don't drink tea or coffee so never paid too much attention.

@SarahAndQuack I have shown him 😂your kids must be marvellous

That's a good point @TheVeryHungryTortoise. My DP works in lab testing, and although she has a science degree, I know they do employ people who don't. I'm not sure how much you could progress, but it'd definitely be better than nothing and might be quite interesting (I have no science quals beyond GCSE and did a summer doing grunt work in a lab, and I quite enjoyed it).

Dd had a part time job but they closed down in March. They have just re-opened but on reduced hours with reduced staff. There are lots of supermarket jobs advertised but they all want weekday hours that she isn't available.

Ds did work experience a year ago and was told to contact them when he started college. he has done so but they have said that footfall is vastly down and they still haven't brought most of their existing staff off fulough.

@Comefromaway sorry to hear that.

I don’t think a lot of people understand what it really is like out there at the moment .

Not happy about it, but surely we're not blaming people for working at home or having jobs?

I have got one dd starting her final year at uni, and one about to start her first year. Both normally work over the summer in a cafe, which of course didn't happen this year. Neither have had any luck getting part time jobs in their uni towns so far.
Thankfully I am an NHS clinician working in mental health and (sadly) there is loads of extra work available so I'm doing as much as I can to make enough extra to help them both out. The am knackered though!

@WaxOnFeckOff lots of outer city/town suburbs with local shops/high streets do already. I've had meetings in such places for the last couple of decades.

Not happy about it, but surely we're not blaming people for working at home or having jobs?

This thread seems like it is.

There will be jobs, just different jobs. It will take some time for the economy to balance itself.

Even now, restaurants and stores near me are desperate for employees. They are back to asking customers if they or anyone they know are looking for work. Stores need shoppers to fill online orders. Many businesses need people to run orders out to cars. They need people to deliver to homes. We couldn’t order a pizza last week because the restaurant couldn’t find enough people to cover the lunch shift and had to close.

Eventually, people in city centers who need employment and can travel will be lured to residential areas with bigger paychecks because rates will go up with the his much demand for employees. That will leave jobs near universities open for students. This is a short-term problem with very real impacts on individuals, but the economy as a whole can adjust and recover.

[quote RedRumTheHorse]@WaxOnFeckOff lots of outer city/town suburbs with local shops/high streets do already. I've had meetings in such places for the last couple of decades.[/quote]
Well yes, of course they do but I'm talking about places such as where I live that have a significant population but only a newsagent/small corner shop type thing, chemist and a chinese take-away. In order to access a cafe or lager group of shops I need to drive, as it takes over 30 minutes to walk anywhere else. Probably wouldn't have been worthwhile in the past as most folk away all day in workplaces but might be worth considering now. In my own estate, there must be at least a hundred folk now at home and would maybe take a stroll to the shop for a nice sandwich or coffee? Not that I am saying the brands mentioned fit that bill....:o

I surely can't be alone in this?

This is yet another dimension of the challenges Covid has thrown young people. My DC graduated a few years ago and is working remotely in a city they hadn’t lived in long before lockdown. As w pp mentioned, without the office and after work drinks, sports, evening classes etc to make friends in a new city they’re desperately lonely.

When DC were at uni, online tutoring was a popular option for a number of their friends. Another thought may be if they have any childhood games, consoles etc that could get them some cash if sold. The bonus being you get a clear out too!

To add - not that I’m suggesting your DC has enough valuable items lying around to replace a job! But perhaps could contribute to tide him over.

There is often care work available, especially weekends. They need to have the right attitude but can be very fulfilling despite being hard work

They also need a DBS for care work, and there's a backlog of applications for them, because, yes, workers are working from home.

I have two teenagers and I really worry for their future prospects however the lack of jobs is because we are in the midst of a pandemic which has crippled the economy.

Can't see what people wfh have di do with it tbh.

I have friends with families to support who have lost their jobs. It's a harrowing for everyone right now.

People think those working from home should commute into offices because they then buy sandwiches in local sandwich shops (and they then employ students). Well some might. My DH went back this week and he took home-made sandwiches with him and always has (although he said he bought a Costa coffee on Monday, so he single-handedly kept the London lunchtime economy going).

Do they employ students though? My experience of most catering establishments in London is that the staff are all from overseas - and employers are sniffy about employing British students because they are fickle and lazy (that's what they say, not what I am saying).

DS1 was lucky in that he is retained by Mac Donald’s so works all of his holiday breaks close to full time to subsidise term time but even he has struggled to get the shifts. There is quite a few care based jobs here but not always good timings for students. DD friend who works in a care home is having to self isolate from college because a resident has tested positive, so not great for her studies.

@cologne4711 not everyone lives and works and studies in London

We live in a university city. I can well believe there are fewer jobs.

Students will get the ones available though as their minimum wage is less than older people and they’re more likely to be flexible enough for zero hour contracts.

Sorry still annoyed my husband has had no interest in over 500 applications!