Whatever Happened to the Summer Job?

by Kori Rodley Irons | More from this Blogger

I remember spending my summers doing all sorts of odd, summer jobs-picking beans and strawberries, cleaning houses, babysitting, hauling hay, working in restaurants-now kids seem to think they need to find a "real" job-or nothing at all. And, with all the restrictions and requirements, it has gotten tougher for teenagers and kids to find suitable work. I'm wondering whatever happened to the summer job experience for kids?

As my teenagers consider finding a summer job-it seems more like a classic job search than how I remember stumbling into all sorts of summer work as a teen. They have to have resume's and do a more traditional search-filling out applications, finding out what the requirements and restrictions are, etc. I suppose that the fact that we live in a growing city and not the rural town where I grew up has something to do with it. But, I also think those great summer jobs-tailor made for kids and teenagers-are disappearing. I do not know if it is because of liability or competition or law changes, but things definitely do not seem the same as I recall.

To be honest, I also think my kids are pickier. They don't see their friends getting jobs picking beans and babysitting, and they definitely want to make "real money"-so they are pickier about what they think constitutes a "real job." My dad offered to pay my son to come stay with them for a couple weeks and help clear brush and build fences-but my son thought that sounded like child abuse! Wearing long pants and working in the summer sun, who would do that sort of work willingly? I was excited thinking that he could experience just a taste of what I knew to be the classic summer teen job, but no way. Ah, times are changing...

See Also: Summer and the Single Parent

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