To expect my 16 yr old to get full time work for the summer?

[whatthewhatthewhat]

At least 8 weeks until they go back to school for A-Levels. I worked full time at that age. AIBU to think they should get a job for the summer?

There are so many jobs they aren't allowed to do at 16 nowadays it seems, and given that 18 year olds ate also on holidays they seem more likely to get them. Our experience seems yo be IF you can get a job st 16 in London tjey mess you around horrendously in a lot of places and really take advantage of you. The kids are really exhausted after the exams and do need a mental break. If it's financially possible for them yo have a break it's a good idea I think. But the I've never had a child that us financially motivayed and always wants yo buy stuff and spend money.
If you do have a child like that They need yo get a job of some sort and I'd go with a weekend day and an even I g consistentlythrought the year. If it's financially more needy obviously the situation is different but I don't think full time holiday work at 16 is ideal , mentally for the child, from the point of view of being not very well treated and being very hard yo get a job for the short today period.

Not many places give 16 year olds jobs any more due to the safeguarding issues.

www.gov.uk/child-employment/restrictions-on-child-employment

Dh left school at 15 to work full time. At 16 he was working a full time day job as well as a milk round. From 14 he was spending every weekend and every school holidays working fulltime.

His Dad pressured him to leave school to work for the family business, dh wanted to go to college and study something different but his Dad went on about him not having the privilege of further education as he had to contribute to the family costs and that dh has to do the same. Dh always said he'd never ever be like his Dad and would encourage his children to enjoy their spare time as once they hit adulthood they can't have that freedom.

Not unreasonable to look for part-time work but temporary work is hard to find.

Dc1 has worked in retail (part-time) since Xmas y12. Most of his friends in t12 also had part-time jobs. Dc2 will be looking in the autumn. She's having 1 month off, 2 weeks on holiday with her Dad , 4 weeks doing NCS then back to school a week later.

wow what a precious bunch of parents online tonight. Of course you're not being unreasonable, and it won't kill a 16 year old to work and earn some cash.

My parents had this attitude too..

Unfortunately, whilst they saw some of my friends working (weekends not full time), they failed to see that every single one of those kids had a/ a parent willing to ferry them to and from the workplace, and b/ the job had been secured for them by friends of family/parents etc and not on the kids own merit alone (in fact several of my closest friends had jobs that simply only existed because their parent had asked, and would never have been advertised!)

And that was in the mid 1990s.

So I had a shit summer looking for work that either didn't exist or I could not get to from my semi rural village with one bus in and one bus out a day.

wow what a precious bunch of parents online tonight. Of course you're not being unreasonable, and it won't kill a 16 year old to work and earn some cash.

Did you miss all the posts about how difficult it is to get a full time job at 16 and just read the ones that suited your reply?

I got my dd a job from 14 in Oxfam books, then that helped her secure further work at 16 and now she is at uni she doesn't struggle with the concept of work ( unlike some of her friends who have never done it). It is more than just earning cash. It builds skills and confidence.

I think it should be up to them. If they want money then they need to earn it.

Exams are hard going, let him have a bit of actual holiday.

If he hasn’t got a job by now, he’s unlikely to get one. The whole processing of looking for a job, applying, being interviewed etc can take weeks. Also, not that many take on sixteen year old nows, and many seasonal jobs are given to returning students.

It’s certainly not unreasonable to want him to work, but practically, ifs he not that bothered, he’s unlikely to find work now.

I had to work every holiday from the age of 13, starting off selling seaside rock for 35 p an hour, I did a 48 hour week in the summer. My husband also had to work long hours from an early age. Its not what I wanted for my son. I've told him I want him to concentrate on his studies until he is done with school. Luckily he doesn't need much spending money apart from petrol money.

My ds left school last week after finishing his GCSE's.
He has been working hard for the last couple of years and revising since September for 3 sets of mocks, a ton of coursework and the exams.

He now needs a well deserved break.
He's joined the gym again, is going on holiday abroad with his dad next week and with us next month and will hopefully be doing NCS with a couple of his friends.
He also has a girlfriend.

He's got years of work ahead of him. I want him to enjoy his summer and relax before he starts 6th form college in September.
I won't be encouraging a job during college either but his dad has a business that he can work for during the weekend which is linked to one of his A level subjects so he's very lucky in that respect.

My 15yo is working ft as a camp counsellor, my 19yo is running summer library programming, and my 17yo is working 4-7 long shifts lifeguarding a week and trying to pick up summer retail hours in a toy shop (all of our local stores take on extra summer staff).
Admittedly the 19yo is home from uni and needs to pay yr3 fees and rent in September, but they all seem quite keen to earn money.

Full time- yes YABU. She should be able to enjoy her summer... why push a child into the rat race early, she has the rest of her life for that.

Part time... depends. I think it's her choice and should be get decision how she wants to spend her holidays. If she's asking you for money though to fund her break then YANBU to suggest she gets a part time job. But if she's not asking you for money then YABU, let her spend her holidays how she wishes.

And I'm saying this as someone who's worked part time since I was 14 and hasn't been supported financially by my parents since 16. It was in my nature to be independent, I wasn't pushed by my parents and my siblings were different.

I think you are being unrealistic to think they'll get a full time job or possibly any job. You can encourage them to try of course but I'd lower my expectations. And remember, they do need a break.

You can expect her to try, but unless you live in a thriving holiday spot or in a place with seasonal fruit picking, it’s almost an impossible task this late. She could get lucky with a local shop, but most places will have already hired summer casuals if they’re hiring them at all.

If you’re thinking of some kind of temp office work, well she should have been putting out feelers about that ages ago to have a shot (and even then she’d really need some sort of connection).

I think her best chance at this point would be putting up some flyers (or posting on the local Facebook) for babysitting or dog walking, something like that. That or trying to do some volunteering so she has something to put on her resume for next time.

I think there's a lot to be said for a summer job, much better than a part time job in term time (which tend to drag down grades).

But I do think full time is too much (you're only young once) and concur with the majority that summer jobs for 16 year olds are much harder to find these days.

I'd encourage her to look for a part time job but wouldn't be surprised if she fails to find one.

I'm all for getting kids working but after mine has grafted solidly for two years (and he really has), what he really needs is to decompress, explore his passions, and spend time with his friends, in order to get himself into a good mental place to start working again for his A levels. Without that, I'd fear for his mental health. He will be doing some part time work, but has managed to get himself some part time work that pays pretty well (~£40/day). I've always told my kids to work hard but also to work smart. He has to be able to work and rest and explore the things that drive his soul.

I did. And I missed out on loads with my friends. Parties and BBQs, shopping and just generally being 16. My parents weren't bothered about how much I worked so it wasn't them pushing me either, I'd have really resented them if it were. It was a weekend job that I already had and just increased the hours. Had to lie about my age to be able to do it as it was.

It's definitely not as easy to find work now. So yes, you are being unreasonable and somewhat unrealistic.

The rest of the kids worked in a supermarket and did a couple of hours before school 3 mornings per week, as well as weekends. That took the hours up to 30 per week.
X 2 12 hour shifts on sat and sun and X3 2 hour shifts 3 during the week.

I struggle to see how it's possible for a teenager to do that and have the energy to put in a reasonable amount of time studying. An A level student will have about 15 hours' class time a week. 3 or 4 hours a week of homework for each of 3 or 4 subjects is another 12 or so hours. A BTEC student should be doing similar hours. If you add 30h paid employment you're looking at a 55–60h working week. That's high by anyone's standards, surely, let alone someone who's still technically (if under 18) just a kid.

16 year old for employers are difficult as they are higher to insure. Also in my area 16 year old temp work is pretty much non existent.

They are only little once, they’ve just come it the other end of GCSE’s let them enjoy their holidays.

I couldn't see this already suggested, so sorry if I'm repeating, but I worked through my gsces and a levels over the summer at various school uniform shops. They were always looking for summer staff, it was good hours and decent money as a teenager. This was only a few years ago for reference.

It's hard for teenagers to find work without connections.