Helicopter Parent?

[Tactically Fat]

Why not a job at a grocery store? Who says a "real" job has to be at a fast food joint? There are a few chains of FF that aren't meat grinders like McD or BK, too. ChickFilA and/or Culver's seem to be incredibly well run, clean, and stuffed to the gills with nice and respectful young men and women no matter where we go. Doubt there's a Culver's where you are, though.

Or how about an Ace Hardware or True Value?

"real" jobs generally come with a semi-rotational schedule. That means probably working most weekend days in a month, or all of them. It'd be hard to do hay on the weekends if he's working another schedule.

Are there any BIG beef cattle or dairy operations nearby? He could get an honest full-time gig at one of those places, I'm sure. Provided he's a quick study, not a wimp, and not afraid of actually working. If he does hay a lot, it seems to me that he's probably not afraid of actually working and not a wimp.

I worked at my local Kroger for a few years in HS, then over Christmas break of my Freshman year in college. I also worked at McDonald's when I was in HS - before the Kroger job. And before that, I worked retail at a small pet store. And before that I detassled corn for a few weeks in the summers.

Let the poor kid get a job if he wants. But if he does, make sure he gives it at least a month.

 

[HoughMade]

...Am I overthinking this.

Yes, I’ve had 2 kids go through this stage. Haven’t lost one yet.

I’ve got 2 more close to that age and they will be getting jobs as soon as there are some to be had that work for them.

 

[spencer rifle]

Our youngest is 17, big and strong, works well with everyone, has outstanding grades, has skills (lawn work, BSA lifeguard and senior patrol leader, some precision machining, etc.) and is highly motivated (saving up for the scout high adventure trip this summer). His plan was, like last year, to work on the waterfront at scout camp - until it was all COVID-cancelled. Now he is job hunting, but a lot of places won't hire a minor. We are all for whatever he gets, and the search continues.

 

[Trigger Time]

Yea, because there are no girls at school, down the street, at the corner gas station working, on social media....ect......
If your kid hasn't had a hundred talks by dad by 16 then you have missed the boat by a few years. and a condom bowl near your front door would never need to be refilled....

Oh you again. Mr know it all.
I thought I had already put you on my ignore list. I'll fix that now

 

[Trigger Time]

I would never let my kid work in a fast food place these days. Have you seen the people running them? It's a crappy job. He'd be better off working like he is now. Doing physical labor for money, as he gets smarter to the ways of the world he can get money for less physical labor. Grocery store, maybe, fast food? Never.

Yep. Very bad influences at fast food places. I worked them in high school.
My first introduction to lesbos, queers, drug dealers, drugs, whores, witches, criminals on parole and work release.
Hey do what you want with your own kids, but I won't let mine work any fast food places. You can't shelter them forever but you don't have to throw them to the wolves either.

 

[Clay Pigeon]

Oh you again. Mr know it all.
I thought I had already put you on my ignore list. I'll fix that now

The amount of irony in your post knows no bounds....

 

[JettaKnight]

Yea, because there are no girls at school, down the street, at the corner gas station working, on social media....ect......
If your kid hasn't had a hundred talks by dad by 16 then you have missed the boat by a few years. and a condom bowl near your front door would never need to be refilled....

Yeah, but if you deliver pizza, naked women open up the door and pull you in!


I guess you don't know it all!

 

[Clay Pigeon]

Yeah, but if you deliver pizza, naked women open up the door and pull you in!


I guess you don't know it all!

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to JettaKnight again.

LOL...

 

[printcraft]

Come on Dad.....you need to let him go. There is a huge world out there he needs to learn how to navigate.
And let him work. This is a solid plus believe me.

+100

Even limited hours will show him the ropes, great education.
Every single thing you can show them now you should, you won't be around forever and it's better they get a grip on it now.

You've already been through the pitfalls and you can show them where not to step.
Now, this doesn't mean they won't step there anyhow but its an even better learning experience when you can deliver an "I told you so."
FYI - Not every "I told you so." comes from a bad place. It's a great teacher.

 

[Snapdragon]

So my son 16 wants to get a job, he is 6’2 and a big kid, not overweight but big, still he is not an adult. I am not real keen on the whole job thing, especially when it comes to fast food and pizza places. I tend to look at things in a different light than most. I am looking at risk versus benefits, employee security, location, average response times, agency jurisdiction, and working hours.

Am I overthinking this.

What the hell are you even talking about? Let him get a job.

 

[MCgrease08]

Yep. Very bad influences at fast food places. I worked them in high school.
My first introduction to lesbos, queers, drug dealers, drugs, whores, witches, criminals on parole and work release.
Hey do what you want with your own kids, but I won't let mine work any fast food places. You can't shelter them forever but you don't have to throw them to the wolves either.

I think we may have worked at the same fast food joint. That was pretty much my experience too.

 

[Itchytriggerfinger]

My son worked at Culver's for almost 2 years before he got an internship through the school. Hands down the best decision I ever made was let him take that job. He learned a lot about responsibilities and the accomplishments of a job well done. Those are traits he'll have for the rest of his life. He'll also never be an ******* to someone in the service industry because he's been on the other side of the counter.

 

[Clay Pigeon]

I think we may have worked at the same fast food joint. That was pretty much my experience too.

So you both grew up in Juarez, Mexico?

 

[Alpo]

My first job (other than a paper route) was in a machine shop at 15 1/2. Almost lost a few fingers. But, there is nothing so rewarding at that age than getting your own paycheck and the respect of fellow workers.

 

[Alamo]

Yep. Very bad influences at fast food places. I worked them in high school.
My first introduction to lesbos, queers, drug dealers, drugs, whores, witches, criminals on parole and work release.
Hey do what you want with your own kids, but I won't let mine work any fast food places. You can't shelter them forever but you don't have to throw them to the wolves either.

I think we may have worked at the same fast food joint. That was pretty much my experience too.

So which did you become?

Even as a teen I recognized that working in a fast food joint was probably not an uplifting experience, and I opted for working summers as a BSA counselor and life guard at Maumee Reservation in Hoosier National Forest until I was old enough to work as a construction gofer and then a State Parks laborer (Brown County State Park for the win). But a lot of my friends went the fast food route, and they survived without criminal records and became educated, productive members. Well, one is a lawyer, but anyway if he thinks it he wants to try it, let him try it and find out for himself. If he doesn't meet the wild side of life while still within your sphere of influence, then he will eventually meet it when you have no knowledge or influence at all.

Good luck.

 

[Sigblaster]

I do not have an issue with him working. He does hay, pet sits, and works hard. To be honest I think he would be better off doing things like that, versus working at a fast food place. He makes about $250 a weekend doing hay and gets between $45.00 and $60.00 a day animal sitting depending on the needs.

It sounds to me like he wants to trade hustling up work for steady work. I've done both, and they have their advantages and disadvantages. I grew up in a city far from Indiana, but I hustled up work like crazy from a young age. You probably wouldn't even believe the ways I squeezed money out of the economy, and no, it didn't involve selling my booty, you sick bastards who thought that.

At 16 I got a retail job for a couple years, and it sucked. While it was dependable income with a set schedule, it left me without the flexibility to work harder or longer to make gains. When I started college, I went back to hustling up work, this time in construction. Made enough in the summer to carry me through the winter school terms.

Let him try it. Maybe it'll be right, maybe he'll regret it, but let him have the experience. It's the best way to learn.

 

[maxwelhse]

I'd say let him do whatever he wants, but I'll be one of the few voices here in opposition to it, sort of.

I've been working for someone in one way or another since I was 10 years old. What I'd consider telling him is that his actual job is school and growing up to be a happy and well adjusted adult. He has the rest of his life to chase after cash, but only one chance to be young and it's going to pass him by in the blink of an eye. Dunking fries for minimum wage doesn't teach anyone who is smart enough to learn much of anything at all, IMO.

If he makes enough money to do the things he wants now, I'd encourage him to leave well enough alone. If an opportunity comes up for some genuine growth, like maybe an apprenticeship doing something meaningful, then that might be a good way for him to invest his time. If he's doing hay now, maybe ask those farmers if they need a guy to help them maintain equipment, mend fences, whatever. Something that puts his mind to work as well as his body.

I worked retail and other menial jobs from 16 to 27 and other than teaching me how to punch a clock and generally not get fired, I didn't learn that much from it. If I had invested the same time in learning a trade, I could have easily opened my own business in the same amount of time. In fact, pretty much everyone I know who is "rich" did it exactly that way.

Anyhow... Just my thoughts.

 

[wcd]

It sounds to me like he wants to trade hustling up work for steady work. I've done both, and they have their advantages and disadvantages. I grew up in a city far from Indiana, but I hustled up work like crazy from a young age. You probably wouldn't even believe the ways I squeezed money out of the economy, and no, it didn't involve selling my booty, you sick bastards who thought that.

At 16 I got a retail job for a couple years, and it sucked. While it was dependable income with a set schedule, it left me without the flexibility to work harder or longer to make gains. When I started college, I went back to hustling up work, this time in construction. Made enough in the summer to carry me through the winter school terms.

Let him try it. Maybe it'll be right, maybe he'll regret it, but let him have the experience. It's the best way to learn.

Well I wrote some pros and cons on the Chalkboard (we have a wall in the kitchen that is green chalkboard Paint)

I listed things like compensation, flexibility, self employment, versus set schedules, lower wages, etc. He has found out that minimum wage is not something he is aspiring to achieve. Today he picked up a referral for farm sitting for 30 days! He negotiated his rate and he is going to do quite well. His main concern is having a employment history. So he is now officially an employee of our family farm, so he gets the best of both worlds. He did not realize how much he does translates into real world experience.

I also conveyed from experience that he needs to enjoy his younger years. He has also been elected VP for his chapter of FFA kind of a big deal so proud of him!

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Well I wrote some pros and cons on the Chalkboard (we have a wall in the kitchen that is green chalkboard Paint)

I listed things like compensation, flexibility, self employment, versus set schedules, lower wages, etc. He has found out that minimum wage is not something he is aspiring to achieve. Today he picked up a referral for farm sitting for 30 days! He negotiated his rate and he is going to do quite well. His main concern is having a employment history. So he is now officially an employee of our family farm, so he gets the best of both worlds. He did not realize how much he does translates into real world experience.

I also conveyed from experience that he needs to enjoy his younger years. He has also been elected VP for his chapter of FFA kind of a big deal so proud of him!

That is awesome! And I think that would count as employment history.

My first job (other than cutting grass) was as a shoe salesman at Gallenkamp shoes. I had just turned 16. I think that was a good experience. Since I was paid on an hourly wage (low!) plus commission, it made me realize that I was in control of how much money I made, based on how successful I was at my job. It also taught me how to talk to people (since I wanted to sell them our shoes, plus accessories). The owner (he had 2 stores in Indy) wanted to make me a manager at 17, but since I wasn't 18 yet, he couldn't do it.

 

[chocktaw2]

That is awesome! And I think that would count as employment history.

My first job (other than cutting grass) was as a shoe salesman at Gallenkamp shoes. I had just turned 16. I think that was a good experience. Since I was paid on an hourly wage (low!) plus commission, it made me realize that I was in control of how much money I made, based on how successful I was at my job. It also taught me how to talk to people (since I wanted to sell them our shoes, plus accessories). The owner (he had 2 stores in Indy) wanted to make me a manager at 17, but since I wasn't 18 yet, he couldn't do it.

OK Al.