Summertime (working) Blues

May 19, 2008 9:13 AM

My 17 year old son has been looking for a part time job for several months, and now would like a summer job before heading off to college. The problem is, he doesn't seem to be able to find anything.

He is a good kid, an honors student and athlete, involved with many school activities, and well liked by his school's faculty and administration. He has applied at almost every local restaurant and retail store we can think of, but no luck. Their reasons range from "We can't hire anyone under 18" (which won't happen for a few months) to "We can't hire someone who won't be around after September." The most frustrating are the ones where we don't know why they won't hire him. He needs to save some money for college, and I am out of ideas.

Any advice on where we should be looking that we may be missing?

posted by genefinder to work & money (31 comments total)

What state do you live in? Some states are keener on hiring high school kid than others.

I'd recommend going to non-chain stores and restaurants in particular. When I was in high school, it seemed that those kind of places were a lot more open to hiring young kids. Also don't forget about traditional high school jobs - camp counselor, dishwasher.
posted by k8t at 9:19 AM on May 19

Movie theaters. Seriously, everyone working at my local theater seems to be 15-17.
Search Indeed for internships in your city.
posted by mattbucher at 9:20 AM on May 19

If he is a self-starter type and has access to a lawn mower and yard tools, yard work is always an option. My brother made a nice bit of money doing that when he was the same age. An especially good market for leads is real estate agents who are willing to pay to have vacant houses looked after in order to maintain their curb appeal; this may be especially true now that there are more houses on the market and they are sitting vacant longer. The construction business also hires a lot of day laborers and he can pick up some useful skills there.
posted by TedW at 9:20 AM on May 19 [1 favorite]

My younger brother had a lot of luck (and fun...lots of ladies) lifeguarding the summer after high school. CPR and other lifesaving techniques are good skills to know anyway, so the training isn't single-use. Plus, when he did get to school, it was easy for him to get a job in his University's gym as a lifeguard there, and even paid during orientation to watch over the pool during the swim tests.
posted by phunniemee at 9:24 AM on May 19

I actually faced something similar when I was a high schooler home from vacation. In my experience, temp agencies often have (surprisingly steady) work, especially on the time-scale of summers off. After demonstrating that I could handle the basics (Microsoft Office apps, rapid and accurate typing), the agencies offered a good stream of data entry and filing positions.
posted by NucleophilicAttack at 9:25 AM on May 19

We are located outside of Boston, and I forgot to mention that he just graduated from high school this past weekend.
posted by genefinder at 9:25 AM on May 19

Oh, and the brother turned 18 near the end of the summer, as well.
posted by phunniemee at 9:25 AM on May 19

Outside of Boston your kid is competing with a LOT of university students.

Don't have his stress out about a resume (unless something has changed in the last 10-15 years), rather, fill out applications and smile a lot. Also have him ask his friends where they work and get recommendations.
posted by k8t at 9:28 AM on May 19

My son got hired at plenty of restaurants and stores at 15, 16 and 17...weird. He also had great luck applying at swim clubs (as a life guard and as snack stand help). His friends have found summer jobs as camp aides and counsellors - one for a local day camp and one for the school district's summer day care program. One has a standing summer job doing landscaping and lawn care for the school district (he could call the district admin building and set up an interview) and another has a standing summer job with the local Parks and Recreation doing clean-up and lawn care. If you have a YMCA near you, they're always on the lookout for extra summer help for their summer programs.
posted by iconomy at 9:30 AM on May 19

If he is diligent about contacting and staying in contact with temp agencies, he should be able to fill a whole summer with a steady income of work, varying from blindingly mindless to ridiculously stressful.

FWIW, I spent the summer after my high school graduation stocking store shelves for a store opening, counting houses on garbage routes for the city, and sorting and filing radiological charts at the local hospital. I learned a lot about blue-collar jobs, and I've taking a lot of experiences away from those temp jobs.
posted by muddgirl at 9:39 AM on May 19

I'm not sure how common this is, but in my Central New York town, my friends and I always got jobs through the town (stuff like the above-mentioned parks and rec., doing filing for various departments, etc.).
posted by stefnet at 9:39 AM on May 19

Do you or your spouse or friends work in offices that need summer help in filing or data entry? My first job was working for a friend of my Dad's.
posted by MsMolly at 9:43 AM on May 19

I remember my first summer out of highschool I had a hard time at first because I didn't really realize how all the hiring managers saw me as a kid with no work experience that was leaving soon, rather than an honors student. But, I always found a summer job after a week or two of frustration.

Temping (data entry, answering phones, assembly) and seasonal jobs (fireworks stand) are where I had the most luck.

I also generally found some additional weekend/evening hours at family-friendly restaurants (pizzeria, diner) but when I did usually did that as a secondary summer job. In my experience, restaurants that don't serve much if any alcohol are more likely to hire kids at 17-20, and affordable/cheap restaurants have higher turn-over because of lower tips.
posted by ejaned8 at 9:46 AM on May 19

He was an athlete? There are usually summer camps for various sports. He might find something as a counselor. The last few summers, my daughter worked at the gymnastics academy where she trained for years. Now she makes money teaching five-year-olds how to cartwheel.
posted by lpsguy at 9:47 AM on May 19

A lot of apartment complexes need pool attendents to lifeguard, check ID's, etc.
posted by junkbox at 9:48 AM on May 19

nthing temp agencies. If he doesn't want to do office work they may have light industrial or warehouse work for him to do.
posted by anastasiav at 10:01 AM on May 19

He should be applying to seasonal jobs, or to businesses that usually have an upturn in business in the summer, since they'll be desperate. Restaurants, movie theatres, any place at the mall, and any place kids would spend their summer vacation are all good bets.

It's probably a bad year for it though, with the economy the way it is.
posted by Sys Rq at 10:04 AM on May 19

Are you in or near a major city? Try camp counselor at public park summer camps. The ones around here are always begging for responsible applicants.
posted by nax at 10:11 AM on May 19

My 16 year old niece is working as an aid for a kid's activities program at the local recreation center. She helps on field trips and watches the younger ones during dance classes and tries to prevent them from licking the windows (apparently a popular activity for this particular group). Not great pay but she's happy with it and is coming home with some great stories.
posted by BoscosMom at 10:26 AM on May 19

Retail stores and restaurants (serving, at least) are in most markets a little unrealistic for a kid still restricted by most states' under-18 employment laws. Grocery and convenience stores, ice cream stands, possibly a concession stand at a country club if you know someone, and movie theaters are where my friends and I found our first jobs when we were under 18. Lifeguarding too, but in my experience the few lifeguarding jobs were always taken up by the swim team kids.

Also: echoing k8t's advice about not bothering with a resume unless the potential employer specifically requests one. At 17 with no prior work experience there isn't much point to a resume anyway, and handing in a resume in lieu of a job application for an entry-level low-wage job will signal to management that the applicant may be the type who thinks they're too good for the job or won't follow instructions.
posted by AV at 10:31 AM on May 19

You might have him try the local putt putt golf place or those little amusement parks where they have go carts and bumper boats. Even the big amusement and water parks hire under 18 in my neck of the woods.
posted by BoscosMom at 10:33 AM on May 19

People have mentioned this already, but I'd like to re-iterate that summer and day camp type places are a terrific source of teenage employment. It may be sort of stressful (the teen counselors tend to be given herds of kids to be responsible for with minimal training or pay), but it definitely builds character.

His involvement in sports will probably give him an edge. Also, most summer/day camps will require that he be infant and child CPR and first aid certified, so getting that in advance may also make him a more serious applicant.

Most of these camps may have already done the bulk of their hiring, though - this is true of many summer jobs - so definitely act quickly. Check out your local museums, recreation centers, YMCAs, or pick up whatever the local free parent newsletter or magazine is in your area for a list of camps/summer activities (Parent's Press is our local equivalent) and start making some calls.
posted by Wavelet at 10:51 AM on May 19

Forget putt putt golf, work at a REAL golf course! Drive the snack cart, caddy, work in the pro shop, whatever they're hiring for. Totally fun!
posted by peep at 10:56 AM on May 19

Has he thought about temp agencies? Nobody's first choice, but they hire almost anyone.

He should try just showing up at busy businesses and asking if they need anyone. The nicer places to work don't advertise; they just wait for people to show up.
posted by gesamtkunstwerk at 11:00 AM on May 19

I just finished my freshman year of college. Last summer I never ended up finding a job, and I was like your son (by the sounds of it). It was bad. What I've discovered is this: many jobs, even part-time jobs, are found through connections. Do you know of anyone that would hire him?

And just from my experience ... if he doesn't find one this summer, don't try to make him make up for it next summer by working a huge amount. Not cool, nor is it fair. He's been trying.
posted by Camel of Space at 12:02 PM on May 19

He should consider being a summer camp counselor.

Also, due to restricted work visas many restaurants, hotels, resorts, B&B's etc. on Cape Cod are short on staff this year. Traditionally, they have relied on summer help from Ireland, Eastern Europe, the Caribbean, etc. There have been summer job fairs and other recruiting efforts on the Cape, in Boston, NYC, etc. Many offer housing as part of the deal.

The Summer Labor Panic.

Summer Employers Brace for Shortage of Foreign Workers.

Cape Cod businesses Scrambling for Workers.

posted by ericb at 12:15 PM on May 19

"This summer, Cape Cod employers expect to need 22,000 to 23,000 people to work here from late May until well after Labor Day. At least 10,000 other summer jobs are expected to be available on Nantucket Island and Martha's Vineyard....This year's search for summer help, as in past years, is concentrated on the region's colleges and high schools. The Massachusetts State Employment Service branch here has already mailed information fliers to more than 600 colleges and universities in the Northeast and in parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia."^*

I also suggest contacting Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce and Nantucket Chamber of Commerce. Their websites also offer info on seasonal jobs and housing.
posted by ericb at 12:24 PM on May 19

Try the local car washes. High turnover, very busy during the summer, can be lots of fun. It's a lot like the song.
posted by deepscene at 1:48 PM on May 19

Start a business painting houses, doing yard work or picking up dog poop. Offer to open up backyard pools for the summer, and then do regular pool maintenance.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 2:51 PM on May 19

Grocery stores where I live around Boston always hire under 18's. Also try ice cream stores and look for postings in your town library or newspaper for local job openings. Many towns have park counselor jobs reserved, but I don't know specifically where you live. If you live in the city limits of Boston or a handful of other cities (I think Winthrop and Chelsea are included) there are many sponsored jobs. Also, ask for an application rather than give a resume. Resumes get thrown out, the pre-printed resume gets looked at. Have him ask his friends that have jobs to see if they can help him from the inside (that's how I got many of my jobs)
posted by fermezporte at 3:05 PM on May 19

It's probably too short of a stretch that he'll be around, but my entirely awesome high school job was as a page in the children's section of my local library. Comfortable, quiet, not especially strenuous, and really nice people.
posted by epersonae at 1:46 PM on May 21