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Miller, A. (1990, Summer/Fall Special Edition). Work and what its worth. Newsweek: The New Teens, 115, p. 28.

OVERVIEW

The hot after-school hangout these days is the American workplace. Between 1981 and 1989, the percentage of 16- and 17-year-olds working grew from 35.5% to 37.6%. For many, that means heading directly from school to work two or three days a week, then heading home to do homework. The motivation for this, according to one 17-year-old, is simple: MONEY. Laurence Steinberg, co-author of the book When Teenagers Work, believes that kids are motivated more by luxurious tastes than by economic need. Of late, experts are beginning to worry that teenagers are spending too much time working and not enough time on academics. Violations in the child labor laws are an additional concern.

The increase in working teenagers is facilitated, in part, by the growing service-sector economy. In 1988, nearly one third of American teenagers (14-19 year olds), 7.7 million were employed. Earning nearly $200 a week in some wealthy areas, these teenagers have inherited the consumerist mentality of America. Many of these young workers do save their earnings, but, as stated previously, they appear to be more motivated by their tastes rather than their needs. Steinberg says that working teens, "are supporting their lifestyle. If you want to buy Reeboks with a pump, you have to have $125 to spend on them." One teenager interviewed earned about $90 a week, and used the cash to buy makeup, jewelry and lunches. In all, teenagers (ages 13-19) spent $56 billion dollars on themselves in 1989—clothes and food topped the list. A survey indicated that 60% of all teens own a calculator, an increase from 30% in 1979; about 28% have a phone and 47% own a TV.

Spending power notwithstanding, what does working actually do for today’s teenager? "If it’s handled properly it can be a great experience for teens," says Michael Rourke of A&P. Bagging groceries and flipping burgers can teach kids the discipline and skills they need for a productive future. A part-time job can also give a kid a sneak preview of the kinds of problems adults face each day—negotiating salaries, arranging work schedules, and dealing with bosses. Critics though offer a different perspective. While some see hamburger flipping as discipline, they see it as meaningless dead-end work. In addition, students sacrifice their studies for monotonous dead-end jobs, thereby trading in the long-term economic benefits of education for a smaller, short-term payoff. A teacher from New York spoke to the state legislature of an "A" student whose grades slipped after he began working: "I noticed he was having difficulty staying awake, difficulty in responding to questions, and his assignments were either not up to past performance or handed in late." Even kids who want to work less and do their homework can be convinced into working too much. One 17-year-old was pushed to work eight hour shifts on successive school nights in her supermarket job. "I would come in after school at 2:30 and work until 11. By the time I got home, I really didn’t do my homework. I did what I had to do to get by." In addition, Steinberg found in his research that teens working 15-20 hours a week tend to spend less time with their parents than their non-working classmates. They also spend more time daydreaming in class, have more behavior problems, and are more likely to drink and smoke cigarettes and marijuana.

Federal labor laws are designed to protect working teenagers, but they are blatantly violated. Current law prohibits those under 16 from working more than 18 hours a week during school. Still, in states like New York, it is legally possible for a 17-year-old to spend 48 hours a week at work. The U.S. Department of Labor has begun a nationwide crackdown on offenders, ranging from mom-and-pop operations to large corporations. One alleged offender was Burger King, which was accused of repeatedly asking teens to work more than the maximum number of hours permissible. Probably the most tragic cases involve teenagers working and injuring themselves, sometimes severely. In 1987-88 the General Accounting Office reported 128,000 injuries to youths on the job in 33 states; many in such places as farms, fast-food restaurants, and grocery stores.

The question of the 1990s appears to be how to best encourage productive work by teens while protecting them. The answer may not lie in legislation, but in providing them with an incentive to value school as much as work. In Florida, where hundreds of teens work as migrant farm workers, the Coalition of Florida Farm Worker Organizations succeeded in luring youngsters back to the classroom by offering a $2.35 an hour stipend to study instead of work. Before the program’s funding was cut, it produced a fourfold reduction in the school dropout rate.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

1. What types of influences and effects do jobs have on teenagers today?
2. How do these influences and effects benefit the growth and development of teenagers?
3. Many teenagers adjust very well and benefit greatly from employment, both developmentally and monetarily, but there is a key issue at hand—are there trade-offs that most teenagers do not realize?
4. Are teenagers suffering from exploitation at the hands of employers? How can teenagers know if this is happening?
5. How do jobs today help teenagers develop a positive attitude toward work?

IMPLICATIONS

1. Teenagers enter the workforce at an age when they are dealing with many other issues. The pressures and responsibilities they encounter in their everyday lives are compounded by additional responsibilities that work brings.
2. Having a job may develop a sense of responsibility and discipline, but it can give rise to a "premature affluence" that can create long-range problems. Teenagers that work have a tremendous amount of spending power and are the group targeted by advertisers; the spending and consumer habits that teens develop will remain with them for an entire lifetime.
3. If teenagers sacrifice their long-term investment in the future (i.e., education and thereby future employment) for the immediate self-gratification, what will they perceive to be needs 10-15 years down the road?
4. Troubling questions arise: How does flipping burgers, bagging groceries, pumping gas, pushing a broom, serving up cold cuts, or ringing up groceries help one develop positive attitudes toward work? How does work aid teenagers in when they enter the adult labor pool? Will these relatively unskilled jobs provide teenagers with skills necessary to survive in a competitive workplace? Will they in turn help the United States remain competitive in the world economically, or will they simply provide the temporary means for teens to purchase the things they want and feel are necessary?
5. Economics needs to be lovingly and skillfully taught to teenagers whether they earn money or not—although the urgency is for those with discretionary incomes. Kids need guidelines for spending disciplines, prioritizing responsibilities or investing long-term. Youth must also not be encouraged toward preoccupation with greed and material gratification in lieu of education.