Plan your teen's first real job
Your teen wants a paycheck, and you want it to be a good first job. In forty-five minutes you'll check the hours rules, pick what to apply for, work out take-home pay, and agree how much goes to savings.
- Time
- 45 min
- Cost
- $0
- Ages
- 14 to 18
- Where
- Kitchen table
What you need
- A laptop or phone for your state's youth work rules
- Paper and pen for notes and a pay estimate
- A calculator
Before you start
- Your state may be stricter. Many states limit hours for 16- and 17-year-olds and require work permits. Where the rules differ, the stricter one applies. Check yours.
- School comes first. For 14- and 15-year-olds, federal rules keep work outside school hours. Plan around homework and sleep too.
- Never pay to get hired. A real employer doesn't ask for fees. If a job sounds too good to be true, stop and look at it together.
Steps
- Check the work rules. Look up the federal and state work rules for their age and write down the hours allowed.
- Compare real jobs. List three jobs they could do, ask family what their jobs took, and note the hours and travel.
- Estimate the paycheck. Multiply wage by hours for gross pay, then explain that taxes come out before take-home pay.
- Set a savings share. Pick a share of each paycheck to save, name the goal, and decide what the rest is for.
- Plan the first month. Set an application date and a check-in a month after the first paycheck.
If it stalls
- If they want the most hours, remind them the rules and school come first, then pick a schedule that leaves study time.
- If net pay looks low, show them the pay stub line by line and ask what each deduction is.
Weekly hours · net pay · saved
Signed off: can do this.Signed by Date