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Q: Do Chinese teens do small jobs like we did?
Things like waitressing, delivering newspapers, working in grocery stores, that type of thing...or are they too busy with school that it just doesn't happen.
Essentially, I guess what I'm asking is do young Chinese have shitty jobs (summer or longer) before they truly enter the workforce?
11 years 34 weeks ago in Business & Jobs - China
If you see a teen with a job like that here, it is because they are doing it to survive. Chinese parents would NEVER voluntarily allow their snowflakes to work before finishing university if they don't absolutely need to. The loss of face it would cause would be unbearable.
the parents would rather the kid to concentrate on studies and any work experience at KFC or maccas as John said will bring shame upon the family. Cause apparently studying teaches them the fundamentals of work.
Parents also think working at these places where we used to work at are meaningless jobs and will not bring in the big bucks. But as I recall the former CEO of Maccas started working flipping burgers for probably $6 an hour rose through the ranks to become CEO of the biggest chain in the world. Only if people in China see this how different would it be today
I suppose schooling Chinese style i.e. 7am to 9pm then homework doesn't really leave much time for work experience.
That's one of the main reasons we have finally decided we will leave China before our daughter gets to high school age, (about 10 years to go).
Xpat.John:
We have the same rule in our home. Our kids will either go to foreign schools here, or we will return to the US once they hit High School (if not before).
FruitIsGood:
I think the workload is already pretty much there by middle school. I might consider sparing your kid middle schools here as well.
Hugh.G.Rection:
For me personally, I would like our daughter to experience the workload for a few years, so middle school would be useful. I would like her to get into that work habit. Learning the basics by rote has its uses so long as they don't have to interpret that information.However, I want her out of the system by the time she needs to start learning to think rather than recite information.
i have came across a lot of university students doing par time job ...
They are doing it undercover as it is illegal to work if below 18 in china..
stan118:
i thought they would be 18 by the time they reach university so how could that be illegal, you can see kids working in the family business to help out during the holidays and nobody says anything
Thakkudu:
i just confirmed with my wife.. in china it is not allowed to employ someone below 18yrs old..
derek:
Kids working in the family business rarely get paid anything.
I worked since I was 13 delivering papers or working in restaurants and played 3 sports all while doing just dandy in school with grades.
Would that be possible in China...no freakin way.
Kids here lack real life education simply because of the culture...or they are robbed of their youth because they are poor...no in between.
I have seen 19 year olds who wont even get their own glass of water (parents and grandparents scurry for them) and, like Pogger said above, I have also seen small children working really hard.
In Puerto Rico, kids rarely have part time jobs (including teenagers) unless money is scarce. My father was from Michigan, grew up during the Great Depression and in the US it is expected that all kids will have part time jobs. As a result I have worked part time since I was 13 (and before then, my sister and I had our household chores).
Among my students, I have noticed that girls often times have part time jobs, either for the extra money or to help pay for expenses or to gain experience. Boys not as often, though I do remember this one student in Guilin who was a full time student AND worked full time at night. Hands down, he is the hardest working student I know, both here and in the US.
In family business (small restaurants, shops and so on) kids sometimes helps their parents
is it lost of face? I have no idea, maybe when in the same family - it is not?
but they work hard
____
when we compare our homelands...
in Poland:
- kids under 15 are forbidden (by law) to make any job
- 15-17 - only some kind of jobs, not physically intensive, and in limited working hours time, no night shifts, no working more then few hours a day (I do not remember exactly, but 6 hours as far as I remember) etc...
- only at age of 18+ you can do any job
I work since 19 (when I finished military high school), then worked full-time job while studying part-time (weekends).
