As the summer months approach, teens have begun their annual search for summer jobs. They are in pursuit of an easy-going, quick way to save up some money for college or summer spending, but unfortunately for them, teen employment rarely ends up so simple.
In the past few years, adult unemployment rates have reached peak numbers, with over 10 million adults unemployed in 2021. However, as the number of employed adults decreases, the number of employed teens reaches its highest number in 15 years. The U.S Department of Labor announced that in the summer of 2021, 54.4% percent of America’s youth were in the workforce.
In a country plagued by high unemployment rates, teens are expected to step up for adults unwilling to work. Teenage employees dominate the food and retail industries, jobs that are famously unwanted by those of age, so a group of teens often ends up operating an entire company by themselves.
Junior Sarah Chen spoke on the demographic of employees at her place of work. “I work with mainly teenagers, the majority of the workers are currently in high school,” she said.
Furthermore, companies routinely undertrain their unqualified teen workers for the sake of allowing them to enter the job sooner and relieve their understaffing issues. Teens are left relying on trial-and-error or their best judgment to make decisions on the job but are then blamed when mistakes occur.
Training is extremely necessary for year-round workers who are typically scheduled for opening or closing shifts to align with their school obligations. During these shifts, there are limited staff working, and teens are executing the most strenuous tasks of the job like cleaning, sanitizing and setting-up all within a strict time period.
Employers are incredibly aware of the majority of teens’ lack of knowledge regarding their worker’s rights, like the right to fair training, so they ploy their teen employees into working too long of hours or entering labor contracts.
Senior Callista Hawbaker confirmed the unfortunate exploitation of young workers through her troubling encounters at her former job, “My legal rights were violated on many occasions. Most of the time when I worked a five hour shift, I would never get a break,” she disclosed.
Employees of ages 16 or 17 are legally allowed to work 40 hours per week, a full-time schedule, but are usually not permitted to participate in full-time worker’s aids like 401ks or paid medical leaves. Businesses expect their teenage employees to put in the same effort as an adult employee but offer them no reward. work
This issue becomes even more impactful for 18-year-old employees because since they are considered legal adults, these teens are now able to work with no schedule restrictions and in hazardous environments. However, at most corporations, 18 year olds still do not qualify for worker’s aid even though they are being treated exactly as an adult staff member would.
Similarly, employers have the ability to pay their youth staff members $4.25 for their first 90 days of employment. The workforce has apparent low hopes for teenagers, but simultaneously expects them to be the backbone of businesses.
The workforce fails to recognize that teens have multiple other responsibilities outside of their jobs. The average teenager has to attend school, complete homework, participate in extracurriculars and maintain their duties at home, on top of their work schedule. Unlike adult employees, teens are not finished with their obligations after leaving work.
With the amount of strain placed on teens to perform expertly in all areas of their lives, it is a miracle they choose to spend any fraction of their time working. Employers take for granted the sheer force teenagers put into companies that often disregard their position.
Hawbaker commented on the lack of respect she, similar to many other teenage employees, felt at her former place of employment, “Whenever I went above and beyond no one acknowledged it. Not saying I need praise, but it’s frustrating to see people doing nothing while I worked to do my best.”
Despite the negative experiences teens correlate with employment, most young employees feel stuck in their roles. When a staff member realizes the success of a company is reliant on their participation, it makes the thought of leaving the job feel cruel.
Chen felt her employers were absolutely relying on her ability to work, “The place where I currently work is definitely dependent on me because of the lack of workers. We’re pretty understaffed and it’s usually only one worker per shift, so it’s very important that I can work all my shifts,” she explained.
Financial freedom in one’s teenage years is an undoubted blessing, but the workforce is potentially too rocky a terrain for teens to inhabit.
