"I want a different job," our youngest, age 16 said when he came home from work. He's a server in the dining room of a retirement village near our home. His brother works there as well, but in a different building.
"What happened this time?" I asked.
"My manager just yells at me for no reason. I feel targeted. It's like I can't do anything right," he was frustrated, and I would be too.
He was already on the hunt for a new job when he voiced his ever-increasing anxiety. He's only been there for three months. This particular job has high teenage turnover. Kids come and go all the time. I'm sure it can be just as frustrating for a manager as it would an employee. But we had a golden opportunity to help our son navigate through this turmoil and not run from it.
We all prefer the path of least resistance, but it doesn't often lead us where we want to go. Perseverance and a strong work ethic can overcome a multitude of job related frustrations. But how do you encourage your teen to stick it out when all they want to do is quit?
There were some things we realized our son wasn't prepared to handle in this job, and addressed those first. These four issues go a long way to longevity and job satisfaction.
You only have to work your assigned hours. Sometimes employers take advantage of teens in the workplace by asking them to come in on their days off or stay "just a little longer" past their shift or come in earlier than was scheduled. In these instances, your teen can say "No. I'm sorry but I can't do that." Legally he or she is within his rights to say "no." But most teens don't know that and are afraid to say "No" so they begrudgingly do what their boss says.
For more information for what the child labor laws say about teen workers, click here.
Make sure you are always doing what you're supposed to be doing. It's easy in a work environment with other teens to go along with the crowd and maybe not do what you're supposed to do. During a "shift meeting" our son got called out for talking, but he wasn't the only one. It didn't matter that his friend didn't get called out; what mattered was he wasn't doing what his boss expected him to do. Encourage your teen to go above and beyond, regardless of what anyone else is doing. If they do feel targeted, this will take away any amunition their boss may have had to pick on them.
Do your job with a happy spirit. Even if they have to fake it for a little while, encourage your teen to put on a happy face while at work. It will make him feel better and show his boss and those he serves that he respects the position and those he works with.
Don't get caught up in workplace drama. It's easy to be a whiner when everyone else is whining, but learning to rise above the "drama" in a workplace is something we all have to learn how to do. If that alienates you from the other kids at the job, so be it. You're not there to impress them. You're there to impress your employers and those you serve.
As tempted as we may be, as parents, to run interference for our teens in their first and subsequent jobs, it's crucial that they learn how to stand up for themselves. This is the perfect time to give them the tools they need and then send them out to practice on their own. If things do get out of hand, or there are safety, health, or legal consequences due to bad management, then of course, step in.
Do you have a first job memory that you can share that illustrates some of these concerns? However you handled it way back when doesn't matter. What matters now is how you'll help your teen handle it.
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