Bill Ho enjoys science. So when the graduating senior from Fremd High School in Palatine looked for a summer job, he focused on places where he could follow his scientific curiosity. He succeeded after just a few days, landing an office job with Hendricksen, The Care of Trees in Wheeling, where he’ll get to spend time poking around the entomology lab.
Students such as Ho are discovering teen jobs aren’t just about making a little cash. They are learning that summer employment and jobs after school can help them choose future careers. With the Illinois unemployment rate sinking to its lowest level in 24 years, teens now more than ever can find jobs that interest them.
“There’s never been a time when teens have been so much in demand,” says John A. Challenger, executive vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., a Chicago-based job consulting firm. The computer and technical knowledge possessed by many teens can make them valuable to employers, he adds.
The most common teen jobs remain baby-sitting and working in stores and fast-food restaurants. But openings for teens now include accounting clerks, engineering clerks, hairdressers, screen printers, auto technicians, environmental lab technicians and computer-assisted designers, says Elizabeth Brisch, program development specialist for Northwest Suburban Education to Careers Partnership.
Finding the right employer, however, still takes a lot of work. The best way to discover good jobs is to ask relatives, parents of friends, teachers, guidance counselors, neighbors and other adults you know, Challenger says. He suggests asking adults whose jobs interest you whether you can visit their workplace to learn more about their careers.
Stores, restaurants and other businesses you frequent are good places to search for job openings, says Julianne Thomas, Evanston Township High School’s job placement coordinator. Most high schools and colleges also have job boards where local employers post opportunities, Thomas says.
The classified advertising sections of newspapers list openings for a variety of careers, and the Internet is a growing source of job leads, says Paul Cleary, college and career counselor at Fremd. Other helpful resources are county, city and village governments that sponsor youth job programs. For instance:
– The Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development in Chicago is taking applications until June 19 for its summer jobs program. The program places more than 15,000 Chicago youths between 14 and 21 from low-income households in local jobs. For more information, call 312-744-KIDS.
– Illinois Employment and Training Centers offer youth employment programs, career counseling, wage information and job listings. Call 888-FOR-IETC for the center nearest you.
– The Northwest Suburban Education to Careers Partnership has job listings and career overviews in different fields. For more information, call 847-758-2380.
While you’re job hunting, keep in mind what you enjoy doing, advises Al Evans, manager of employment and training services for the Private Industry Council of Lake County. Think about whether you like to work indoors or outside, sitting down or moving around, using your hands or mostly your mind, Evans says. If you’re interested in science, see if you can find a job cleaning up in a laboratory. If you want to be a lawyer some day, see if you can work as a receptionist or file clerk at a law firm.
For example, Shahnaz Agha, a graduating senior from Fremd, has played tennis for nine years and wanted a job that would keep her close to the game. This summer she landed a job helping a tennis instructor teach children. “It doesn’t really feel like a job because I love tennis,” she says.
Of course, locating a job that interests you is only half the battle; getting the job is the other half. But you can take steps to make that challenge easier. For instance, before applying for a job have family members or friends ask you likely interview questions so you can practice the answers, Thomas suggests.
Another key is putting together a resume that highlights your education, work experience, extracurricular activities, achievements, volunteer work, language skills and computer knowledge, Challenger says. If you don’t have direct work experience, you can emphasize that you are reliable, organized and hard-working. You should also prepare a list with the names, addresses and phone numbers of people who know you well and can give you a good reference, he adds.
You can improve your job chances by dressing appropriately and arriving on time for interviews, smiling, speaking clearly and greeting employers with a firm handshake.
Before taking a job, it’s important to make sure you aren’t getting into a risky situation. Last year an estimated 100 youths were killed and 200,000 injured on the job, according to the National Consumers League. For this reason, the league raises a red flag at the following jobs:
– Delivery and other driving. Because the combination of driving inexperience and job pressures can turn deadly, federal law prohibits driving as an occupation for youths under 18, unless it is less than one hour in a 20-hour work week.
– Cash-based businesses such as gas stations, convenience stores and fast-food restaurants where you are asked to work alone, especially at night.
– Traveling youth crews selling consumer goods such as magazines and candy in strange neighborhoods. These jobs are risky because they are often unsupervised and leave youths vulnerable to assaults and abductions.
– Businesses that pay under the table. Their workers have no protection under the law and are on their own if they’re injured because the employers don’t pay worker’s compensation insurance.
– Construction crews, especially when they work in high places or with electrical power.
The National Consumers League urges parents to become familiar with the laws governing youth employment. Illinois law, for instance, requires youths under 16 to have employment certificates issued by their school superintendent’s office before they can hold jobs.
Until age 18, working teens must get paid at least $4.65 an hour. The minimum wage for youths 18 and older is $5.15 an hour. “In this job market, there’s such a labor shortage, most kids are getting more than the minimum wage,” says Connie Canutti of the Illinois Department of Labor.
