WASHINGTON — It’s officially in the first week of summer, and some teens may be discouraged they haven’t yet found summer jobs.
But according to Janet Bodnar, editor at Kiplinger Personal Finance, there is still plenty of time to find employment to fund the fall semester. She says that despite the late start date, many typical summer employment places are still hiring.
“Some of the traditional places, restaurants, retail, amusement parks, things like that, it’s not too late to go to those places because there’s a lot of turnover. It is summer, after all,” Bodnar says.
The turnover isn’t only because of seasonal employees. Many full-time employees will go on vacation, and that can be just the time to jump into other positions, as long as teens show an interest in being trained in other duties.
Finding a place that is hiring, however, is just half the battle. Bodnar says the key to landing that job is personal contact.
“A lot of kids, they’ll go online, they’ll look for a website, but they won’t make personal contact,” says Bodnar.
“Even now in the Internet age, the most important thing is to get your foot in the door, literally, to shake hands, to look the potential boss in the eye, and tell them that you’re interested.”
The benefits of teens getting summer jobs is not only monetary. The lessons in responsibility and financial planning is also critical. Now can be a great time to open a checking or savings account with an eye to the future.
“If they have money from a job they have actually earned, they can contribute to a Roth IRA,” says Bodnar.
“They can contribute to a retirement account, and starting now while they’re young is the best way to build up a lot of money when they’re older.”
For more information about teen summer jobs, visit Kiplinger’s website.
