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Was your weekend job when you were young the best job you ever had?

Paul Carter

Hello everyone,

I am Paul Carter, a CIPD member and HR professional. I love to write and record podcasts about the world of work. My next blog and podcast are taking a nostalgic look at how the weekend jobs we had when we were younger shaped us and our attitude to work. We were care free, earning just enough money to have fun, buy clothes and run a car. We developed our interpersonal skills through meeting new people, being part of a team, being managed for the first time and dealing with tricky customers. A small taste of financial independence and what work would be like when we left higher education. We were dazed and confused, loving and hating it but always going back for the next shift. It may have only lasted for a couple of years but you will always remember your favourite weekend job. 

Was your favourite weekend job the best job you ever had? What did you learn from it? Do you still see people you worked with all those years ago?

Does your company employ weekend workers? A 2020 report by the Resolution Foundation indicated that the employment rate of 16- to 17-year-olds with weekend jobs had halved in a two-decade period. Should a weekend job be a rite of passage as a teenager? What are teenagers missing if they do not get this experience?

Please share your views and complete my short survey https://forms.office.com/r/VgPnf1mYLF?origin=lprLink 

If you would like to contribute to my blog and podcast, let me know.

Thank you

Paul

  • Paul, what a brilliant topic!

    When I was a teenager, my dream job was working in a shop. Sadly, everyone else in my small town also wanted to work in the shops, no one ever gave me any interview training so I failed to get a feted Shop Job. I also lived in the middle of nowhere so I was limited where I could get to. My job aged 14 - 18 was Sunday lunch waitress at the hotel across the road. I also occasionally helped with weddings and other weekend events, if it didn't interfere with my teenage social life (ironically, a good 70% of my earnings being spent in other hostelries...) Was it my dream job? Absolutely not - tales range from being locked in the cold room, having to sweep up a dead mouse, pouring pints from old fashioned pumps age 15 ("if anyone asks, how old you are Gemma?"), many inappropriate advances from older men (often colleagues) who really should have known better, being scalded and burned times beyond number. In short, in many ways a very short and fast introduction to some of the hazards of work.

    What did I learn from it? If you are friendly and confident, you can earn more money in tips than wages. Organisational skills - being easily bored I worked out the most efficient way to set up a banquet with silver service so I had more time to sit and read. Also, the starts of being a supervisor - being one of the more reliable and organised ones, I was often put onto "training up" the new recruits, and sometimes the heady joys of assigning the minions to set up the banquets for me... Also, when the restaurant was not busy, I got drafted into helping my friend in her role as a Chamber Maid and (hat tipped to hospitality workers) that was even worse than my normal job. So I guess, like others, it also taught me to understand more about what I wanted out of work and what I was suited to.

    No friendships sustained - I moved area for Uni and then work. I did manage to rope a Uni friend into one of my Uni jobs and she and I had a happy time making sandwiches hungover in a deli in Manchester....
  • in reply to Robey
    Hi Robey, thank you for this fantastic response which drew pictures in my mind. I will be referencing your experiences in my blog. Please let me know if you would like to contribute to my podcast.
  • in reply to Tania
    Hi Tania, thank you for this response which casts a light on the less fun aspects of casual work. I would be very grateful if you could contribute to my blog and podcast. It would be anonymised feedback (not naming the employers). Please let me know.
  • in reply to Tracey
    Thanks Tracey, working for your parents must be difficult.
  • in reply to Nina Waters
    Hi Nina, this is a great response, very insightful. Would you be happy to contribute to my podcast for my website watchingworkingliving.co.uk The episode will be shared on podcast platforms too. Thank you
  • in reply to Gemma
    Hi Gemma, I am a big fan of Countryfile and like seeing horses in fields but would never ride one. I will reference your examples in my blog. Let me know if you would like to contribute to my podcast. Thank you
  • in reply to Matthew
    Hi Matthew, thank you for this vivid and insightful response. Your church experience reminded me of The Sopranos quote about the Mafia: "I mean, what happened to this thing? For God's sake, we bend more rules than the Catholic Church." I love that you stood up to a bully. Bullies do seem to pop up in warehouses a few years after school. Would you be happy to contribute to my podcast? It will shared on podcast platforms and my website watchingworkingliving.co.uk/
  • in reply to Gemma
    Gemma - thank you for liking my question. It will be the first podcast of my new website watchingworkingliving.co.uk/. I have produced plenty of internal podcasts for the civil service. I will reference your examples in my blog. Would you like to contribute to my podcast?
  • in reply to Paul Carter
    Sure, I'm happy to be referenced, preferably anonymously! I've never participated in a podcast - could we set up a short call for me to understand how it works? Could be a great learning experience for me.
  • in reply to Paul Carter
    Many thanks, Paul! I'd be delighted to take part in your work.

    One of the big things for me about getting the weekend jobs was that I was at an independent school a long bus ride from home. While the school community was quite diverse I largely only mixed with people from my own kind of background as all my sports and clubs were school-based.

    We were not a wealthy family by any means, especially after school fees paid, but it was an eye-opener to be around people who lacked the privileges I had. I think I developed a sense of empathy & understood the value of education and opportunity a lot more.

    I will always remember Zombie and Speedy (aka Derek & Avril) the Motorcycle Club (possibly even Hells Angels) members I worked with. To see two leather-clad bikers packing all sorts of felt, wool and wood to make up craft kits at John Adams Toys was quite a thing!