Teenagers Hit the Job Market for the Summer

Once the excitement of summer vacation wears off, the sprinkler hoses have lost their pressure, sun bathing has turned into sunburn and every TV rerun has been watched--teenagers turn to summer jobs, to fight off the ensuing ennui of three months without school.

While some find jobs to have something to do, others are saving for college--and some just need pocket change to take that special someone out on a date.

Eric Miller stands behind the bar at Falls Road Golf Course wiping down the lacquer veneer with a white towel. At age 18, Miller has moved up from driving golf carts to serving drinks.

“You have to be 18 to serve beers,” said Miller. “I do everything from cooking to cleaning to taking people’s orders.”

Dillon Nussbaum has not yet broken into the realm of serving drinks. At 17, he's still too young. Today, at Potomac Pizza, he's cleaning up overflow in the soda dispenser.

He carefully uses two cups to scoop out the murky water from under the tray. Nussbaum said he's been working at the pizza shop for about seven months.

Apparently, the job crisis is affecting not only adults, but teens as well--Nussbaum says he's one of the few people in his group of friends with a job.

“I don’t work, usually,” he said.

Of course, there's always the classic summer teen job: towering over the pool with a floatation device in arm’s reach, lifeguards are the guardians of the pool.

Maddy McGowan, 17, has been working at the Potomac Swim & Tennis Club pool for three years.

“When we get here, we unlock the bathrooms and open the desk,” she said. “Sometimes camps come and the kids can’t swim at all.”

McGowan hasn’t made any saves yet this year, but he and co-worker Sarah Ewel, age 16, say there have been a couple of close calls. The lifeguards work in 30-minute shifts to keep them vigilant and protected from the sun, but the job is full-time. The girls are working from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today.

McGowan’s friends are more interested in working than some teens. She said a lot of her friends work in clothing stores, and Ewel has a couple of friends interning at NIH.

If the sun and screaming kids are not your forte, then Robeks juice is a good place to apply.

“I love working here,” said Eric Peterson, 17. Peterson has been working at the store since November. “All the people I work with are my friends from school.” 

Peterson doesn’t have a car so he chose to work at Robeks for its location. “I live close. I go to school at Churchill,” he said.

Summer time means summer fun, but also work for some teens. Expect to see them behind the counters until September, when school starts.