By KATE HUNTER
When I was in Year 10, I got my first job. I was a checkout operator at a convenience store. I worked Saturday mornings, and one night a week, about 10 hours in total.
Most of my friends had similar jobs, at department stores, fast food outlets. The more glamorous girls got themselves jobs at popular fashion stores. The money wasn’t any better than ours, but they got a 10% discount on their clothes and accessories.
Those girls without actual jobs also worked – babysitting was generally easy to come by. The pay wasn’t great, but if you picked the right family it was easy money. Perfect for studious no-out-on-Friday nights girls such as myself.
My kids aren’t up to working for cash yet – just the odd badly washed car or dog, but I assume they’ll be on the hunt for a casual job once they turn 15.
It came as a surprise to learn that many parents now prefer their kids not to work, and use all their spare time for study and school-related activities. ‘The pressure is so much more intense now,’ one acquaintance said, ‘Study is my daughter’s job until she finishes year 12.’
‘Really?’ I said to my friend Lou, a teacher and mum of four teenage sons.
‘Really,’ she said.