Should your teenagers have jobs?
This is a question many parents grapple with. Part of you thinks
it will build character, teach responsibility, expose them to the
real world, and let them finally realize the true value of those
designer shirts or sneakers they just have to have. Perhaps their
earnings will defray the cost of running a car and even contribute
toward the cost of college, if that’s where they are heading after
high school.
Another part of you just wants
your teenagers to devote themselves solely to the schoolwork,
sports and the incredible number of activities that will help them
become better-educated and more well-rounded adults.
Walking a fine line
If you feel your instincts
warring within you, you’re not alone. Susan and Tom Price, authors
of "Is Little Rob Ready for Work?" a series of articles found on
the web site
www.familyeducation.com, point out that
working can give a student confidence, work skills, adult
supervision after school, and perhaps improve their grades.
"Studies find that students who work a moderate amount–no more
than 10 to 15 hours a week during the school year–tend to earn
higher grades than those who don’t work at all," the Prices write.
More than 15 hours, though,
starts to lead to problems. A 1998 report by the National Research
Council and the Institute of Medicine shows that students who
worked 15 hours a week during the school year had lower grades,
higher dropout rates, and were less likely to go to college.
Cindy Bond, editor-in-chief of
Family Education Today, said that when teens work 20 hours or more
a week during the school year– which apparently about half of U.S.
high school seniors do –they sacrifice sleep and exercise, spend
less time with their families and cut back on their homework. Not
exactly habits you want your kids picking up for the rest of their
lives.
Summer jobs seem to not raise
the same concerns as school-year jobs but do bring up their own
questions. Are some jobs better than others? Can my child find a
job that might start him/her down a career path? Are internships
worthwhile?
YES. Some jobs should be avoided
because they pose a danger to teens. It’s always good if teens can
match a summer job with potential career interests. If families
can afford to not have their teens earning money, an unpaid
internship, say at a hospital, could give them experience they
could later parlay into a good job.
Finding the right job
A good place to start looking
for jobs is the school’s guidance department. Newspapers, want-ads
and word-of- mouth also lead kids to appropriate jobs.
In today’s wired world,
online resources abound. The chamber of commerce and individual
businesses often have job listings. To get to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics’ page matching school subjects to future careers, visit
http://stats.bls.gov.
(The article above was prepared
with the assistance of 2000 The Learning Network Inc. All rights
reserved.)
The laws regarding teenage work
12- & 13-year-olds can hand
harvest fruits and vegetables for 4 hours per week.
14- & 15-year-olds can work
for 3 hours on a school day and 8 hours Saturday, Sunday, and
holidays, up to an 18-hour work week. From June 21 until Labor
Day, they can work between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
At age 16, teens can work 4
hours per day Monday through Thursday, and 8 hours per day
Fridays, weekends or holidays. They can work 28 hours per week,
between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. With parental permission, they can
work until midnight Friday and Saturday.
All teens must obtain working
papers from their school district, which employers must keep on
file and on premises. To obtain working papers, teens must have
a parent’s written permission to work, proof of age, and a
certificate of physical fitness.
No minor can work in the
construction industry, and teens are not permitted to operate
machinery that could prove dangerous, including trash
compactors, cardboard crushers, and lifting or hoisting
machines.
Teens must be paid.
