I started out working in Miss Selfridge at 16 in the shoe department which was hard work but also fab fun as I adore shoes! But it also taught me about handling people, earning & saving money, the discipline of getting to Croydon on time every Saturday as well as teamwork, customer awareness & service , numeracy, time management and prioritisation, persuasion and working under pressure.
Esther McVey the work & pensions Secretary said that schoolchildren should get part-time jobs to help prepare them for the work.
Esther McVey said she did not think they were “lazy” but there had been a “significant decrease” in the number of teenagers working on a Saturday.
She told the Daily Telegraph there had been a fall of up to 60% in the numbers of young people with weekend jobs.
As a result many lacked the “soft skills” needed for work, she said.
“What you’ve seen from the 1980s, particularly in this country, is far fewer people doing Saturday jobs and doing jobs after school,” she said in an interview with the newspaper.
A Saturday job used to be a rite of passage for many children, but pressure to succeed at school and other factors means that’s no longer the case.
Did your Saturday job help you? Do you agree with Esther McVey?
Did your Saturday job led to a full-time position?
I’d love to hear your thoughts.