To think that the under 18s minimum wage is exploitative

[DaddyDavid]

My son who is 16 has been offered a job at a supermarket. The pay is £3.72 an hour. I can't und why the minimum wage is lower for under-18s it seems like age discrimination. This has annoyed me so much, as I fualt it would be good for ds1 to get a Saturday job but know I think it would be better if he worked about the house and I pay him more aibu

Well if his years of experience and top notch qualifications let him compete w adults on an equal footing there's nothing to stop him competing against them for better paid work. Personally as a teen (and before the minimum wage) I didn't have that much to offer an employer except enthusiasm, so was pretty happy to have any job, on the understanding that it would be a valuable experience and lead to better things.

My niece was told she had to leave her Saturday job in a high street clothing store when she reached 18 as they only employed under 18s as Saturday staff ( obviously to keep the wages bill down). I don't know how that can even be legal?

I remember my first job was in primark (in the 90s, before it became fashionable) for £2.50 per hour. I was upset when I found out that older staff were being paid more than me.

Looking back, I didn't have any experience and it was a foot in the door to get some. I moved onto much better jobs. The lower wage does give companies an incentive to take on staff they otherwise may not have.

Apprentice wage is almost a pound less per hour.
It has to be looked at as a way of acquiring useful skills and independence in the workplace rather than a job for decent money.
What does DS think?

Xpost

I could see a lot less people of that age being in work if it was increased. Employers, and rightly so, would go for those with more experience.

I work for an employment agency (won't say which one in case I'm recognised)

We get so many young people refusing to work for the NMW. The result is that they spend more and more time unemployed and their CVs are empty of work experience which also puts employers off.

We also get parents kicking their kids out or threatening to because not enough money is coming in - their child benefit has stopped. The parents wrongly think that they can guilt trip us into giving more benefits or the employer into giving more pay.

Everyone has to start somewhere. Qualifications aren't enough, you need work experience to go with it.

Is there an Asda near you he can apply to? Starting rate is the same for all ages. Was about 30p about the full minimum wage when I was there.

Ds is unsure to take it or not. We live in London so he gets free bus travel so he won't have anything to pay out for.

The lower minimum wage encourages employers to recruit 16 year olds, if they cost the same wage as an 18 year old they would probably choose not employ 16 year olds as they are generally less experienced, require more supervision and less productive.

For his sake try to think of the positives of securing a job that lots of 16 years would have been trying to get, earning his own money and the work experience he will be getting. All of which will be much more valuable to him in a couple of years time.

Here are his choices:
-suck it up, gain from experience, get good references and move on to a better paid job as soon as he can.
-don't do it, but stay at home all day playing on his Playstation (or whatever else 16 year olds do)

• campaign to change legislation either doing the job or not

or come and wash my car for £2 an hour.

Ds who is 16 started on that wage in our local shop before xmas, just a few hours a week but it soon adds up. He really enjoys it as well as getting him out of bed in the mornings he's made new friends and it is providing work experience for future cvs. He gets paid 4 weekly so has just got around 200 in his bank half to spend and half to save towards an overseas school trip later this year. Even if I could afford it I would be hard pressed to find him that sort of money every month for household chores as he already does his share around the house quite happily.

My first Saturday job was at Wimpy and paid £2.20 an hour which then changed into a BurgerKing and my pay went up to £2.60 an hour.

It was rubbish pay and it was less than older staff members but the key thing was that it was MY money. I was at sixth form so it was in effect pocket money and mine to do what I wanted with. I felt rich! I also got time and half for Sundays.

I think if it's just a PT job whilst at school etc than a low wage isn't really an issue. It's about far more - gaining experience of working and earning, being responsible and that type of thing.

I assume employers have tomboy out for additional insurances and make mother allowances when employing under 18s which may account for a reduced rate perhaps?

I was paid £2.20 per hour for my first shop job aged 14. I'm now 28. How is it still so little?!

*Here are his choices:
-suck it up, gain from experience, get good references and move on to a better paid job as soon as he can.
-don't do it, but stay at home all day playing on his Playstation (or whatever else 16 year olds do)

• campaign to change legislation either doing the job or not

or come and wash my car for £2 an hour.*

or start his own business

He's unsure whether to take it?

It might nt seem a lot in comparison to adult NMW but are you and your DS forgetting that he has little to no outgoings so the money will be his own to spend? He has no tax to pay, no gas water electricity, presumably you buy his food, he has a roof over his head, doesn't have a car, doesn't have children...

More fool him if he doesn't want the money and experience.

You should encourage him to take it.

As others have said, it's a step into earning and managing his own income and will look good on a future cv.

He'd be better off having a real job on his CV. It looks good that he can hold down a job while studying and also it shows future employers that he's already developed some workplace skills.

We tried to get Ds2 into Asda but they were always inundated with applicants of all ages.

If he is doing the same role as someone on a higher wage then I don't believe he should be paid at lower rate. However, in the workplace there are many tasks someone under 18 is not permitted to do - this could be the reason for the difference in wage.

An example of this is at my workplace, a 16 year old is not permitted to use knives, handle cleaning chemicals, use the oven or use the pizza cutters. This means they are literally just there to serve customers and top stock up, whereas the staff members over the age of 18 serve customers, fill stock up, make sandwiches, bake the pastries, clean the store, and much more. In this instance I see why a difference in pay is acceptable.

However, I moved out at 17 and if I had been on such a low wage there is no way I could have afforded to live!

Our local Asda won't take them under 18 as they can't sell alcohol. He should take the job. Lots volunteer for no wage to gain experience

It's unfair to pay 18yo+ a wage that is lower than the minimum wage because some of them (eg children into care) will want to start working and will have no other income and no family support at all.
It's unfair because you are asking someone to do the same job for half the money because they are yopung (as if they needed less money).

It's a left over from the time when there was no minimal wage and employers managed to make it acceptable, mainly, as pp said, because these are people who in general don't need to fully support themselves.

It's still shit.