When I was a teen there was no shame in working at Roy Rogers, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Wendy's etc..

[Anonymous]

This was here in DC area in the 1980s.
Those jobs (while sometimes crappy) were seen by all as spending money and free food.
I attended a Catholic High School where tuition was not cheap.
Whether working at the country club or working fast food. A job was a job.
Everyone was expected to have some sort of part time job.

When did this all change?

[Anonymous]

When I was a teen in the mid 90's, there was definitely a stigma attached with working in chain fast food restaurants. If one worked in food service, it was preferred to work for local mom and pop places. I did. It was awesome.

[Anonymous]

Why not babysit, dog watch or mow lawns? They make great money and it's not taxed.

[Anonymous]

I think, over the past 10 years, so much of getting a job has come down to connections. You either have them through your parents or through an internship.

Most internships are now unpaid and uber competitive. To get a good one, you need to have experience that readily applies (or a family/friend connection). This means kids have to start taking on more "serious" jobs earlier and earlier. There is no time to wait tables or work retail because those jobs no longer are good enough to help you make your way into a serious job.

[Anonymous]

Snowflake generation above any type of labor that does not involve WiFi connections

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I was a teen in the mid 90's, there was definitely a stigma attached with working in chain fast food restaurants. If one worked in food service, it was preferred to work for local mom and pop places. I did. It was awesome.

Roy Rogers was local.

[Anonymous]

I think it changed during our recession, when adults needed jobs to support their families, and kids got really ashamed of being poor.

[Anonymous]

One good thing bout my poor hometown in flyover america is you WORKED. Turning 15.5 was a huge milestone because you could go down and get your work permit. You could even be a lifeguard at 14.5 which was another huge opportunity in my town. I didnt know ANY kids by 16 who didnt work…and we worked some major hours. 30 a week while in school was completely standard. We worked at the mall, fast food, grocery stores, lawn care, etc etc. My dad always said "the thing I miss about being working poor is everyone WORKED because thats what we did." Trust me I knew NO ONE that didn't work because of sports or travel teams or gymnastics or whatever.

[Anonymous]

I did a lot of different jobs as a teen in the early 90s but I have to agree with PP that the fast food chain job was the only one that felt stigmatizing! I quit Taco Bell after just 2 shifts ... definitely felt embarrassed when classmates came in. That wasn't the only reason I quit though; the real reason was that it was gross, and that they ignored what I told them when they were trying to schedule me.

On the other hand, I loved my jobs at locally owned businesses! Never felt embarrassed, and loved that people enjoyed what we were selling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not babysit, dog watch or mow lawns? They make great money and it's not taxed.

Right you are! And it’s never too early to teach felonious behavior! Be Like Trump! MAGA!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One good thing bout my poor hometown in flyover america is you WORKED. Turning 15.5 was a huge milestone because you could go down and get your work permit. You could even be a lifeguard at 14.5 which was another huge opportunity in my town. I didnt know ANY kids by 16 who didnt work…and we worked some major hours. 30 a week while in school was completely standard. We worked at the mall, fast food, grocery stores, lawn care, etc etc. My dad always said "the thing I miss about being working poor is everyone WORKED because thats what we did." Trust me I knew NO ONE that didn't work because of sports or travel teams or gymnastics or whatever.

Yep. I’m not even that old. I’m 37 and my friends were all the same. I know several people who went on to be college athletes—D1 even—and worked their way through school, myself included. Frankly I think the work ethic we developed and the time management skills were an asset to being a high level athlete.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it changed during our recession, when adults needed jobs to support their families, and kids got really ashamed of being poor.

Your right about the first part, the second part is that the economy slowly rebounded, the adults did not leave those jobs, and then technology. Teens got used to not having the jobs, now it's harder to get one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This was here in DC area in the 1980s.
Those jobs (while sometimes crappy) were seen by all as spending money and free food.
I attended a Catholic High School where tuition was not cheap.
Whether working at the country club or working fast food. A job was a job.
Everyone was expected to have some sort of part time job.

When did this all change?

Who says it is shameful to work at the places you mention? However, when my kids go to college I want them to focus on college. Internships are fine. But, I want them to do the best they can academically and if you are working 40 hours or so than it is going to take away from studying time. And college is expensive so I don't want them to waste it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think, over the past 10 years, so much of getting a job has come down to connections. You either have them through your parents or through an internship.

Most internships are now unpaid and uber competitive. To get a good one, you need to have experience that readily applies (or a family/friend connection). This means kids have to start taking on more "serious" jobs earlier and earlier. There is no time to wait tables or work retail because those jobs no longer are good enough to help you make your way into a serious job.

I don't think you need connections to get a job at the local movie theater or fast food joint. I think you need a parent to push their lazy kids to get off their asses and out of the house.

I get what you are trying to say but really how many kids are getting internships and building their Linked-in profiles at 16? Most people aren't doing internships until they are 20 or 21 at the earliest.

[Anonymous]

Damn I really miss Roy Rogers. That was the only fast food I liked.