Does your teenager have a saturday job?

[alfiesbabe]

If so, what job, and what age did they start it? Did you encourage them into it or was it on their own initiative? I'm thinking I'd quite like my kids to all do Sat jobs when they're 16 - I just think it teaches them a lot of life skills. I never did any part time work until I was at Uni, and I think it would have done me good.

We live in the arse end of no where, so while I hope dd can get her self a saturday job, I think I will be driving her everywhere.

I used to travel to City on the train from the town where I stayed 40 min on the train to work in a veggy cafe, was great experience as it was the kind of place where the staff truely came from all walks of life and different countries. Customers were also fromall around the world.

I learned how to argue and put my case forward, lots of debates amoungst the staff about meat eating etc, first heard about the evils of Nestle too . Of course I learned all about customer service and preapring food as weel as how to hide the cooks fag end when it ended up in the sald .

DS wants to work in a supermarket on the tills (ah bless), but I have a much more interesting job lined up for him, will be able to doit while he is at uni.

Mine have all had milk round/paper round type jobs before 16 (actually they're not allowed to do milk rounds any more I don't think ) and then had supermarket jobs once they reached 16 and yes, I agree it is enormously good for their souls!

Washing-up/KP is often available at an earlier age, but it helps if you know somebody as they all want to do it.

DS2 (nearly 15, last one at home) has had a 6-day paper round for nearly 2 years and generally gets himself up and out for it, although DH helps in the car on Saturdays (big fat papers) and when the weather is foul.

Supermarkets are the most reliable employers of 16-year-olds, but won't take them on before they're 16 so they have to get their names down early. Poor old DS1's birthday is mid-July so he couldn't even start straight after his GCSEs and ended up having to wait until September when the uni students went back.

There are very strict legal restrictions on hours for 13-16 year olds, I will find a link...

Legal stuff here - this is Ealing but it's the same everywhere.

At 15-16 they can do a full 8-hour day on a Saturday and in the holidays.

Yep.
One went up to local hotel waitering and portering.
One went into retail shop.
One ds went into womens retailing shop!!!
One is summer only on golf course helping greenkeepers.
And one is carer for an autistic boys and helps give his mum a break ( lots of checks needed etc)
All earn between £5.30 and £6 an hour.

My sd worked in some stables for almost a year.
Then she worked in a pub/restaurant waitressing.
Now she is in a cafe on a saturday waitressing.

She has just turned 15.

He doesn't have enough time. However he is trying to get some babysitting (or should that read... I'm pimping him out to my friends) established. Then he can complete his homework, watch their tv and eat their food while I can watch my tv and not have to worry that the poor wee boy is starving!

My ds2 (16) did a footie referees course and referees for a local league on a Sunday (under 16's). If he does 2 games he gets at least £30 which is probably nearly as much as he'd get all day in a shop.

Downside is the course cost £150. And guess who paid for that

And where might one find such a course Saggar? Don't worry I would take the costs out in installments from DS1.

He did it through our local Football League Club Mars (Port Vale FC- 'Who?' I hear you ask). You could call your local team and ask if they have a Community Officer, I think that's who arranged it.

All of mine have worked/ are working for McD's (except DS3 whose name is down to start in June )

Does make them grow up.

Ta!

He goes to a sports camp in the summer and next year he'll be old enough to train as an accredited sports leader or some such thing. I think that he would really enjoy the refereeing thing.

DS2 was 16 in August and started working on Saturdays for John Lewis in September. He had done a paper round and Sunday paper sorting from the age of 13 and was glad to move on to something that didn't involve getting up at 6 am every day in all weathers. DS2 worked also worked in a shop on Sundays whilst in the Sixth Form and did some DJing on Friday/Saturday nights and it didn't seem to affect his AS/A Level results.

My 12 year old dd has just started to help out with Saturday ballet classes for younger pupils. She loves it and gets paid in free dance classes.

Yes. He is 15 and he washes up/helps in the kitchen of a local pub. He is not enamoured with it, but wants some money to spend and knows I can't give it to him.