17 year-old needs summer job- best way to find one?

easy · 14 July 2017 at 6:14PM

OK, my son needs a summer job (We are insisting he does SOMETHING).

He can't muster up the confidence to go out door-knocking, and he seems to think sitting down at his PC and looking online is the only way to find a job - I keep telling him that temporary/part time/unskilled work is unlikely to be posted on line.

BUT apparently I know nothing "It isn't like it was in your day Mother" .
However, he still hasn't got a sniff if any work.
So please can you tell me how you/your teen/student got summer work.

He has filed in applications for Tesco/wilkinsons - but being under 18 hampers him for the supermarkets I think.

milliemonster · 14 July 2017 at 6:28PM

I helped my daughter put together a CV and we took it around all the local shops, she handed it in and waited, within a week had a call from New Look to go in for an interview and got the job, it was never advertised.

She did the emailing everyone thing but I tried to explain that no employer is going to be impressed by an email that takes no effort, but actually making the effort to walk into somewhere give them a brief summary of yourself with a smiling disposition would pay dividends, and it worked

Silvertabby · 14 July 2017 at 6:30PM

but being under 18 hampers him for the supermarkets I think.

Not necessarily. When I've been served with wine by an under 18 year old, they shout 'Code whatever' and an older staff member just looks up to see that I'm obviously not a minor and gives the nod for the sale.

If you live in a touristy area, then hotels etc usually take on temporary staff for the summer season.

jackieblack · 14 July 2017 at 6:44PM

Recently I've seen lots of jobs adverised on signs in windows or outside the establishment on a board but tend to agree with milliemonster's approach

Eliza_2 · 14 July 2017 at 7:34PM

My granddaughter went to cafes and restaurants (she had waitressed for job experience) she's 15 and walked into a job. It hadn't been advertised anywhere.

An independent shop I used to work in also took on youngsters who came in and brought their CVs. Not advertised online or anywhere. It sounds as though footslogging is the only way to do it.

DigForVictory · 14 July 2017 at 8:01PM

Our Explorer Scouts were told in no uncertain terms that every single one of them was employable, but it was up to them to go out & find the job. By footslogging, the prospective employer got a better idea of whom they were, how serious they were, how well they scrubbed up and so on.

One lad who stammers wrote his own card "please don't mind the stammer, I really need the work!" and it got one offer of bar work just as they appreciated his humour & style.

I agree loads is done online, but when it comes to finding part time work, it's largely down to shoe leather. Although one son has the offer of a gardening gig as a neighbour has seen him at work with a shovel in our garden & a colleague, hearing this, said she has a small bit of digging she'd pay for someone else to do... It may not come to anything but a tenner from someone else's wallet is good for everyone !

ACG · 14 July 2017 at 8:42PM

Your son is wrong. Im 32, so probably still over the hill in your sons eyes, but I remember thinking the same when I was his age.

Although there is probably a bit of a meet in the middle. I gave someone a job who emailed me out of the blue. I know other people who have managed to get jobs just by sending their CVs and asking for a job. Not quite the same as walking the streets knocking on doors but it is the same principle.

When my parents had a pub, people used to walki in all the time with CVs. It does happen still.

DCFC79 · 14 July 2017 at 9:15PM

Try the supermarkets, maybe one will offer something. Last store I worked at we employed 3 under 18's so it can be done.

Look on the websites for various shops, stores.

MrJones1 · 14 July 2017 at 10:33PM

As your son spends much time in front of the PC, he should have IT skills. Maybe he is good at creating websites or do graphic design. If this is the case, he should offer his services to local businesses. Surely there are businesses out there that either have no website or have an outdated website. Then if your son has the skills, he can earn something from it. He should dress well, visit them and hand out his business cards. What's good is that business cards are not expensive and there are very catchy templates on the Internet. Just order a bunch of cards and start the work.

trailingspouse · 15 July 2017 at 5:51AM

Supermarkets will certainly take on people under 18 - it just means if they're on the till someone else has to do the age-related checking. It happened all the time when I was at Morrisons.

Just walking down your local high street looking at the shop windows might help - people still put signs in the window for staff. Just yesterday I noticed our local newsagent needs a paper-child, and one of the cafes is looking for waiting staff.

Motivation is the thing I think - don't be in too much of a hurry to pay for him to do fun things over the holiday. If he doesn't see the need for money he won't see the need for getting a job.

seashore22 · 15 July 2017 at 6:30AM

Both of my children found jobs by walking around the town centre and handing in their CV wherever a shop window said they had a vacancy. One of them found a full time job in the time it took the rest of us to attend a Sunday morning church service. The job was a great one too and she stayed in it for a few happy years. Sometimes you just need some get up and go and a bit of luck, although being presentable and having good social skills helps too.

Edit - this was only a few years ago too and nothing much has changed since then. Shops wouldn't put notices in windows if they didn't expect people to go in and present themselves.

17 year-old needs summer job- best way to find one?

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