The Trials and Tribulations of Working as a Teen
LHS holds a job fair on Dec. 1 as a way to help students find a job that suits them
Alivia Bartlow and Aicha Beye talk to two Schnucks employees about the details of working at the store and what their jobs entail.
December 9, 2022
A teenager’s first job can be one of their most challenging experiences – and finding one isn’t any easier. Whether you have specific hours you need to work and a location you’d like to be at, finding a job that fits your needs can be a long and difficult process.
Seniors Dillon Roberts and Dominick Haley helped to organize the event as part of their Marketing II class and help teens make this process a little bit easier by hosting a job fair.
On Thursday, Dec. 1, various businesses located in the Lake St. Louis area had tables and presentations set up in the cafeteria for students to talk to store managers and ask questions about their jobs, hoping to find some insight on where to work.
“The goal of the job fair is to help connect the local businesses that are hiring with the Liberty student body,” Haley said. “We want to help students gain employment and decrease the worker shortages that are impacting the success of businesses.”
While some people think you should focus on school when you’re young, many students think having a job can help teach you life lessons.
“It shows how hard work pays off,” freshman Charles Giraud said. He also describes how working can help teach teens money management skills, saying, “Having your own money gives you a good view of how to spend it.” While juggling work, school, and other responsibilities can be stressful for teens, it’s important to learn a work-life balance at a young age.
The different companies at the job fair were very welcoming. All the stands had treats and other items for the students to take home. Chick-fil-A was giving out cow-shaped stress balls and Qdoba had a free brownie sample for students to try. Starbucks even did a coffee tasting. The employees gave each student a cup of coffee for them to try, telling them about the process of understanding different notes and flavors. They also gave them a free sample of Starbucks’ Cranberry Bliss Bar.
The employees were a key part of making the job fair an enjoyable and beneficial experience.
“Everyone who’s here seems very happy to answer any questions we have and are just here in good spirit,” junior Aicha Beye said. The store managers were more than happy to tell students about things like hours, pay, benefits, and a lot of other aspects of working they might have questions about.
Overall, the job fair was a very valuable and fun event for Liberty students to attend. Everyone who went seemed to get a lot out of the experience. The job fair was very helpful to teens and definitely helped make the job search process more simple.
