To work or not to work?
By: Kristy Klaus
To work or not to work?
This was the choice that faced many teen-agers as they cleaned out their lockers and took their last final exams.
The choice many made, many local businesses have found, has been not to get a summer job.
Don Fecak, manager of the Grand Union supermarket in South Brunswick Square Mall, said he spoke to the South Brunswick High School guidance office in an effort to recruit help, but didn’t get a lot of response.
He said kids don’t want to work in supermarkets because they have to work weekends and holidays.
"It’s not an upscale job," said Mr. Fecak. "We usually work when everyone else has off."
Mr. Fecak said he usually has 10 or 12 high school kids working for him, but this year only has four or five.
The additional help is needed during the summer months because the kids are used as vacation fill-ins for regular employees, Mr. Fecak said.
Meghan Hogan works as a cashier at Grand Union and will be a senior at SBHS in the fall. She said she started working during the school year and works about 25 hours a week.
"I work because I need money for a car," said Meghan.
Meghan said kids don’t want to work at a supermarket because it can get busy and stressful. Kids don’t want to work during the summer because they would rather go out and party, Meghan said.
Josh Suskin works at Pets Pets Pets in the South Brunswick Square Mall and will be a sophomore at SBHS in the fall.
He said most of his friends don’t work, but he would rather have a job than sit at home and do nothing.
"My friends are lazy," said Josh. "They would rather sit on their couches or sit at their computers."
Sue Salisbury, manager of Hit Or Miss in the South Brunswick Square Mall, said she too went to the high school guidance office in an effort to recruit help, but got no response.
Ms. Salisbury even asked her daughter, who will be a junior at SBHS in the fall, to see if any of her friends wanted to work, but none did.
"It’s a small store and the work is easy," said Ms. Salisbury.
She said she pays up to $6.25 to start, but kids would rather work at a mall.
"It’s cool to work at the mall, but they pay less and it’s longer hours," said Ms. Salisbury.
Bianca Mickens, who will be a senior in the fall and works at the Dayton Park Pharmacy, agrees.
She said she would rather work in a mall at a clothing store, but doesn’t have a ride.
South Brunswick Township, which hires teens to work for public works, utilities, recreation and the library, had less applicants than usual, said Bobbie Boekhout, who handles the hiring for the program.
"It seemed to be slower this year, but I filled all the spots," said Ms. Boekhout.
But, Sol Camhi, co-owner of Explorations, a kids fun center in the Brunswick Square Mall, said he had little trouble finding help.
He said he recently had a slew of applicants.
A job at Explorations might be popular, because his employees aren’t selling anything so there is no pressure, said Mr. Camhi.
"We take care of kids and have fun," Mr. Camhi said.
He said he also has a large staff and all the kids know each other.
"We have a lot of kids on the roster," said Mr. Camhi. "They are all friends and work together."