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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. Newspaper want-ads and word-of-mouth
also lead kids to appropriate jobs. And
in today’s wired world, online
resources abound for job searches.
Students might also want to
visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Web page
to check out how their current school course work matches up with their future
career interests. You'll also find an Occupational Outlook Handbook here as well
as general information on wages and salaries for various jobs.
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.
(This article above was prepared
with the assistance of 2000 The Learning Network Inc. All rights reserved.)
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permission to reprint this article, please contact the
Capital Region BOCES Communications Service at (518)
464-3960.
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