Scott Ott asks:
>I was asked to do this by a
>high school counselor who is addressing concerns of local businesses that
>their teen employees don't have whatever "work ethic" is. Basically, I
>think the complaints center around consistent attendance, attitude, sense
>of responsibility, being there on time, appropriate garb, & etc.
I am discussing this point with my 17 year old daughter who I felt
might be a good source for some of the input you were requesting. She is
sitting here with me as we are discussing your "work ethic" topic. Her
first reply was "they are freshman, why are they working?" My daughter,
Michelle, has been employed at the local theatre for a year now as a part
time worker while attending high school. Her "work ethic" has been
excellent over the past year. However, she has a good point in that she
feels that the "work ethic" attitude comes from what you learn at home
and by the employer you work for.
She feels that if responsiblity is accepted and expected at home it
will be carried out in everything you do. So home life is definately a
variable. Too, her current employer expects high standards and
demonstrates those high standards to her employees, all teens. Granted,
some don't stay employeed very long, but the mangager has had a core group
of teens that have been there a long time. These students range in ages
from 16 to 18. Each of these students has extra curricular activities at
school, and are tops in their class. They train new hires and they can
tell when a new employee has what it takes. There is loyalty, committment
and a sense of responsibility among the core group.
My daughter can vouch for the fact that most of the younger kids don't
make it. So, maybe the employers are focusing on adolescence and not
young adults. Let the students that are working out help to hire the new
ones. My daughter's employer insists on input about new hires from the
core group and believe me they have had a pretty high success rate. Kids
know kids. The core group of young people where my daughter works expect
the new hires to be:
Willing to learn.
Reliable and able to rotate shifts.
Respectful to the customers, manager and other employees
Friendly
Good attitude
Committed.
Hope this helps.
Linda Ortberg
TCJC/Asst.Prof.Quality
Ft. Worth, TX
--Sinte <Sinte@aol.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>