Yes, summer only. My dad's rule was that class came first during the school year. I also didn't have a car or license to get myself to work... I worked st a discount department store one year, then a fast food taco restaurant, as a summer nanny, and finally at a child car center from age 16-18.
I worked full time at my family's business in the summer, babysat whenever I could the whole time I was in high school. Junior year, I decided not to go out for Basketball so I got a job after school at our local bank doing filing etc, that turned into training to be a teller after school and on Saturdays.
Yes. I taught swimming lessons and lifeguarded year round starting at about 14. I started life guarding at 15. I worked after swim practice and on the weekends.
Working 20+ hours a week would have been really difficult for me in high school. My school required everyone to do a sport every season, so we were all at school until at least 5pm every evening for practice. Homework easily took 3-4 hours a night, so I was occupied with school and homework like 12-13 hours a day during the week before even factoring in optional extracurricular activities. I don't think anyone at my high school worked during the school week. A few hours of babysitting or one shift at the mall over the weekend was about the max anyone worked.
I think it really depends on the school and the kid. I would not want my kid laying around playing video games for 20 hours a week, so if that was what was happening, then, yes, I would want them to work. But if my kid was busy with homework and extracurricular activities, I would be fine with them not working. Honestly, my preference would be that they be so busy writing term papers that they not have time to work much.
Yep, the minute I could drive (in Jr. year), the minute my dad insisted on a job. I worked about 10-15 hours a week at a sporting goods store (think Dick's Sporting Goods) and did that on top of the extra curriculars I was in. I would go to school at 7:15, go to practice until 4, then clock into the job at 5 and worked until 10. My drive home was 20-25 minutes. I don't know when the hell I did homework on those nights.
ETA: Just recalling how much I was paid - $5.40/hr + nonexistent commission (not many people shop in the evening weeknight), and recalling how much I hated it. Sales job for a super introvert. Not a good idea.
Starting working in concessions at ballparks after I turned 16 and was a trainer at a call center for a major credit card company by 18. I worked at least 35 hours a week since 16. I volunteered regularly, interned with my church, and maintained high grades.
Since I was 14. I started waiting tables at one of my parents restaurants. Before that I helped answer the phone and bagged take out orders. I worked every Saturday night and Sunday lunch (sometimes all day at 12 hours), Fridays when school was out, week nights when they were short of help which felt like all the time. I got mostly A's and had a lot of AP/honors classes and even took a college course my senior year. I was also on the track team and did band for 2 years.
I think it was good for me and taught me how to manage my time and see how hard it was to earn a living. But I wished I didn't have to work so much because I think I missed out on a lot. My last semester of high school, I wanted to get out of it so bad that I got a job at Cheddar's. I'm surprised my dad let me do it but that was a good experience for me too and I got to enjoy being in high school for a little bit since I had a lot of friends working there.
SS only because I only babysat, but did a lot of it. Due to where I grew up, I couldn't have a job in HS. If I'd lived elsewhere, I'm not sure if I would have or not.
My brother and I did. I babysat on a standing schedule and he worked in a photo lab. We were expected to keep our grades up and did, otherwise we couldn't work and they wouldn't pay for what our jobs did, car insurance, gas, etc.
My younger sister got bad grades and my parents paid her not to work as her "job" was school. My parents claimed it was fair.
Post by mrsukyankee on Nov 23, 2014 5:43:31 GMT -5
I worked in the summers only. I played sports and went to a competitive high school, taking high level classes. I would have loved to work but there was no way I could have done well in school and worked too. But I had to start working summers at 16 and did.
My high school wasn't demanding. I held a job, played sports, did drama club, yearbook, etc because academics were a joke. I can understand why people at serious high schools wouldn't work.
I went to a good school and worked while taking 3 AP classes my senior year. I was a class officer and in several extracurriculars. No sports thanks to knee surgery and my spectacular lack of coordination. I was only working 2 hours a day, typically, though, unless I babysat at night or on the weekends.
If you're not in sports, especially, or an extracurricular that has an equally demanding schedule, I can't see why you can't at least work a few days a week. (However, I was in high school nearly 15 years ago at this point. Part-time jobs might be harder to come by now than they were then, or at least that's what we've heard from a lot of college students who are home for the summer.)
Yes. It was how my brother and I got grocery money some weeks because my mom was too busy dating someone closer in age to me than her. From the time I started working at 16 until now, I've had 2 jobs (with the exception of 5 months when I was laid off from a PT job).
this is insane to me! Wow!
I work 2 jobs now because I can honestly say I enjoy the PT job 99% of the time. The Y has been very good to me-I get a free membership (we just pay for DH/DS) and their retirement plan kicks ass (12% without me putting in a dime). I get a lot of joy out of teaching lessons, and DS loves going to the Playhouse while I teach. It obviously takes time away from DS, but due to getting off at 4 and picking him up at 430, we have almost 4 hours together on nights I don't work and about 2 on nights I do.
People give me a LOT of crap about working 2 jobs, but I don't do it for the money-I do it because I enjoy it and I firmly believe that everyone should learn how to swim. I still teach lifeguard and CPR classes occasionally, but not nearly as much as I did pre-DS.
(However, I was in high school nearly 15 years ago at this point. Part-time jobs might be harder to come by now than they were then, or at least that's what we've heard from a lot of college students who are home for the summer.)
This is a good point. While I think it is reasonable for y4m's BIL to look for a job, provided his schedule allows, it is a different world out there now. So many adults have lost jobs and turned to the service sector where teenagers have typically found employment that it's not as easy as it once was for a kid to find a job.
I'm a special snowflake. 15&16 years old, I worked st the Army football games so I only worked during the season. At 17 I started working as a file clerk and worked after school, for summer & school vacations, I worked more hours. Went to full time once I started my freshman year of college.
I picked no. During the school year, I focused on school, sports, and extracurriculars. During the summer, it was hard to find a job as a high school student because I grew up in a giant college town and employers (food and retail) would rather hire college students. I had my first job after my freshman year of college. I didn't work during the school year in college either (except for one semester about 12 hours a week). I did random babysitting gigs from the time I was like 10 on, but I didn't count that.
My H, on the other hand, worked almost full time (way more than was legally allowed for high schoolers) from the day he turned 16, through both high school and college.
I selected year-round but I worked a lot less hours during the school year. I was a lifeguard all through high school. During the school year I worked at the YMCA 10-12 hours per week and during the summer I worked at an outdoor parks & rec pool for 40 hours.
Year round. I started babysitting at 12. Once I turned 15.5, I started working as a restaurant hostess and worked the maximum number of hours including weekdays. It is my greatest hope that when I have a kid, they don't have to work during the school year. Summer jobs, yes.
Year round at Target for a total of 5 years. Started summer before senior year, all through senior year and then 4 years of college. High school, 20 hours per week during school year. In college, I worked anywhere from 30 to 40 hours a week.
Post by nonsenseabound on Nov 23, 2014 12:14:42 GMT -5
Sometimes. I worked some summers but I had some pretty cushy jobs. My first two summers I worked summer school as a teachers aid. I didn't work junior year summer because thee was so much going on with family and travel. My senior year I worked in an art gallery for a summer.
I never world during holidays or school year. My parents thought I had my entire life to work. So I never worked more than part time kn the summers
Post by gibbinator on Nov 23, 2014 13:24:38 GMT -5
I worked during the summers from 15yrs but not the school year or holiday breaks. I did a couple years weeding for a greenhouse, a couple years as host at a museum, and a couple years as a travel counsellor
Post by CrazyLucky on Nov 23, 2014 13:26:37 GMT -5
We were expected to do something. I played sports during school and worked in the summers. My brothers did not play sports, and they worked year round.
I don't remember how long or what exactly the schedule was. But I think I worked my sophomore and junior year after school as a filing clerk. It couldn't have been that much because I also did sports after school.