The government really, really wants you to get a summer job

Emma Finamore
Last updated 24 Sep 2018

Apparently it could be just as important as the qualifications you get, and make you Brexit-proof.

Young people should take summer holiday jobs to prepare themselves for the workplace and to get a head start in life, the minister for work and pensions secretary Esther McVey has said.

She believes summer jobs provide vital skills, as well as equipping people so they (and the nation) can thrive in a post-Brexit Britain.

Despite the apparent benefits, the number of teenagers working while studying has more than halved since 1997.

The percentage of young people working while studying has more than halved since 1997, falling to 18% from 42%.

In a bid to combat this decline, the government has launched a drive to get teenagers working in the summer holidays – placing 20,000 posts on its ‘Find a Job’ website.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, McVey warned a “cultural shift” has seen teenagers focus on education and training at the expense of earning extra money and gaining vital work experience.

The percentage of young people working while studying has more than halved since 1997, falling to 18% from 42%.

Time in the workplace also helps people develop essential ‘soft skills’ through their working relationships with their employees, colleagues and customers – effective teamwork, communications, negotiating skills, ability to work under pressure, customer service, and problem-solving.

These are attributes that employers desperately want in young recruits, and are often what people say university graduates are missing, despite their academic credentials. Two-thirds of employers say experience is important when recruiting, and young people who have had part-time jobs tend to earn 12 to 15 per cent more than those who did not.

Statistics even show that as well as providing extra cash, part-time jobs increase the likelihood of teenagers and children finding work later in life.

McVey wrote: “As we enter this post-Brexit era, I want to make sure that young people are as prepared as ever for the workplace and I want to restore the merits that summer jobs can bring.” She acknowledged that while a summer job may not be “a dream job for life”, they are “firmly connected to having a successful future”.

The government’s campaign was launched at Center Parcs in Sherwood Forest this month.

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