Children and Work From June 15, 2009

This morning I am going to talk about children and work. Now when I say children, let me clarify, I am not talking about little kids, or even teenagers working, this is not about chores or sweatshops or any other popular causes. This is about young adults who are entering the working world or who already have been in the working world for a short time. Boys and girls (I say this because even though they are anywhere from 18-25 none of them are really adults), it is time to cut the apron strings and grow the **** up. Let’s look at some examples on people who need a reality check. These are all people who work in retail sales with people I know.

First we have “Baby” a 20 something (I think she is 19 or 20 actually at least I hope that she is actually that young) married girl, not mature enough to be considered a woman, just a little girl playing at being grown up. She is a sales person, whom I would say wants to be paid to sit on her brain. First what I have personally witnessed, one of Baby’s co-workers has a daughter whom is a teen and was brought up right, hard working, wants a job and believes if you are paying her to do something then she had better get it done right. She helps out her mother from time to time with things like cleaning up stock rooms, etc. Just little things to help her mother along, by doing this she has learned the store pretty well. On several occasions, customers were looking for help and Baby would disappear (saw her sneak off myself), the co-workers daughter would answer their questions or help them find something, etc. Basically doing Baby’s job since she wasn’t going to do it, Baby would glare at her and then skulk off. She also expects that whenever she calls someone that they be willing to cover her shift for her, doesn’t do the daily cleanup unless someone specifically tells her to (part of normal duties mind you), etc, the list goes on. And then there is time off, this child has been there less than six months and yet she asks off for a week at a time about every 2-3 weeks, she has to run home to visit Mommy. Is she married? I think not, I think she is playing house (personally I don’t think anyone under 24 should be allowed to get married for reasons like this), and of course she also puts in to be off every holiday. Basically, she wants to be hired for a job where she only has to work when it is convenient for her. I only know of a couple of jobs like that but they are illegal. (See the law under prostitution and drug distribution) Every other job requires you actually put some effort into it, the guys that now work only when they want to, have EARNED that right by busting they butts early on. It wasn’t that way when they were hired.

Next we have “Princess”, Princess is a student whom is working and lives in a delusional world of “Me”. Her idea of showing up on time is to show up the minute she is supposed to start. Then to clock in and take care of personal things like potty breaks, etc. Policy is you show up before hand so that you can take care of these things and then be ready to start work when it is time to clock in. Otherwise you are considered late. She also has been known to be late for work without calling in, or calling in 5 minutes before start time to say she was going to be late. Another child that asks off for every holiday, but her other favorite ploy is the day before she wants off to tell someone in management (other than the store manager who is authorized to change the schedule) that she needs to be off because she has “concert tickets that she forgot she had gotten” (who forgets concert tickets? At that cost, I don’t think so….). Her latest escapade was when Mommy showed up at her work and her and mommy started bad mouthing the store manager to each other in their conversation, loud enough for others to hear. And she wonders why (after only a few months of employment) she didn’t get the promotion to a junior management position that she wanted. Even with all the things she had already been scolded about, written up about she still expected to get the promotion. Why? Because she wanted it, didn’t matter that she hadn’t proven herself or earned it. This child is studying opera singing at college, and expects to be rich someday. My bet is she ends up as a female pudknocker music teacher teaching music in a grade school in a small Podunk town somewhere.

Finally, the last example I am going to use (although I do have many many more). Is something that all of the college students I have seen there (I am assuming that the college students with a decent work ethic are unable to lie enough about when they can work to find employment since I know there are some out there), they tell you that they can work, and then at the last minute. “Oh, I can’t work then, I have something for school, (be it project, event, class, etc). I went to college children, it hasn’t changed much since then, you know well in advance when something is coming up, including changes in your schedule. So this garbage about “I didn’t know until today that this is happening on Monday” is so much BS.

The problem with this starts with the parents, they give these kids every little thing they want, with no real work. So these brats get out in the real world and have no work ethic, employers are just supposed to pay them and kiss their rears because they are gracing them with the benefit of having these brats work for them. I may be wrong but that is the attitude they are displaying. And this makes it even harder for the kids that want to work to find jobs. You would think that with the current economy in the tank and looking like it’s going to be there a while (the government says it’s getting better – but I don’t see it), that these children would do everything they can to keep their jobs. Not bite the hand that feeds them. But then again, they feel entitled to whatever they want.

Now a word for the children:

No matter what you may believe or have learned from your parents, YOU ARE NOT ENTITLED TO EVERY LITTLE THING YOU WANT. If you want something, you need to earn it. This whole generation thinks that they are entitled to have every little thing without putting out any effort and the heck with everyone else. Guess what, the world does not work that way. So you had better get off your lazy behinds and get to work with some effort.

And now a final word from Baby and Princess's Boss after she read the preliminary blog entry:

Pretty funny but TRUE!!! Here is my quote: "If it's more important for you to play than to work and bring home a paycheck, then I say " by golly, you play" because I sure don't mind giving your pay check to another hard working individual and let them pay their bills, I'm sure they appreciate it ...