Tori Gossum is on her feet just about every morning, busing tables and serving customers at Dolina Cafe and Bakery. Like many Santa Fe teens, Gossum wanted a summer job to earn some cash, but ended up gaining much more than money from the experience.
“I gained a better understanding of what it’s like working in a professional and adult environment,” said Gossum. “It’s important to have experience working in a serious business, to be better prepared in the real world.”
She also learned to take responsibility for her mistakes, to act and dress professionally, and to work quickly and efficiently.
Teens wanting to earn money for college, for a car, for playthings, for material goods or to help their families put bread on the table, often start with a summer job. The time to start looking for those jobs is now.
Many working professionals agree there is great value for teens in finding a summer job. “You can learn new skills, and you can get a sense of what the workplace is like,” said Simon Brackley, president and CEO of the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce.
But Brackley said there also is good money to be made from a summer job, especially now, amid a strong local economy. Many businesses, restaurants and retail stores are seeking help and willing to pay well to attract enthusiastic and hardworking employees. What really counts, Brackley said, is having a good attitude.
“Getting along with the other people in the workplace, being reliable, and being focused and ready to learn — all of those things are important, and it’s great if you have some skills, too,” he said.
For teens, another aspect of working is the prospect of learning more about a particular topic or skill they hope to pursue in college.
“Summer jobs or internships are a great way to demonstrate a particular passion in an issue or area of study that you might pursue in college,” said Story Leonard, college counselor at Santa Fe Prep. “When colleges are trying to determine what kind of impact you will have on their campus, your work experience is an important indicator of what you will choose to study or what clubs and organizations you might join.”
Lizzy Flores, a sophomore at Santa Fe Prep, said that working has taught her skills to supplement the ones she has learned at school. “I gained the ability to meet lots of new people with different personalities. I also got to make strong relationships with my co-workers and our regular clients,” she said.
Annamaria O’Brien, manager at Dolina Cafe and Bakery, agreed. “There’s nothing more beautiful than people who are motivated and willing to be a part of the team,” she said. “Especially in your teens — a confusing time of life — finding something to focus on and be productive is important.”
But how to get that job, particularly if it’s the first one? O’Brien said that when teens are applying for a job, they should present themselves professionally. Dress neatly, be clean, speak with confidence and have “that enthusiasm and the passion for wanting to work. I like to hire driven kids, and it’s nice to see them grow.”
“Usually managers notice your personality and enthusiasm about a job,” Flores said. “Just be yourself 100 percent!”
Brackley echoed those suggestions, saying that just knocking on the door of a business and introducing yourself can make a good impression. Gossum said putting together a résumé can’t hurt, even if you think you don’t have anything to put on it. She said include your skills, your volunteer work, your academic achievements and your extracurricular interests.
If summer jobs can teach teens skills they would never find elsewhere and employers actively seek out teens to fill out their busy summer schedule, why has the number of teens working over the summer dropped dramatically nationwide?
According to the Drexel University Center for Labor Markets, while many businesses have experienced a greater need for teen labor over the summers, the labor force participation rate for teens has dropped to less than 34 percent since the 2008 recession. A 2018 Drexel study predicts that only 30 percent of teens will have a job this summer, whereas 52 percent of teens relied on summer jobs in 2000 and 44 percent in 2006. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also shows a drop in the number of teens seeking summer work, from well over 24 million in 2007 to about 22.5 million 10 years later.
The Pew Research Center suggests several reasons for the decline in teen employment, including an increase in teens doing volunteer work or unpaid internships, and teens’ increased participation in summer courses, summer programs or sports, all of which conflict with a job. That report said most teens who look for work end up working in the restaurant business.
One such teen is Desert Academy student Aidan Serna, who works as a host at San Francisco Street Bar & Grill. He said there is value in staying active and doing something — anything — during the summer months.
Serna said that while it might be easier to lie around and relax, “working always makes me feel better, like I’m actually doing something useful for myself.”
Emma Lawrence is a junior at Santa Fe Prep. Contact her at elawrence@sfprep.org.
The Santa Fe New Mexican observes its 175th anniversary with a series highlighting some of the major stories and figures that have appeared in the paper's pages through its history.