Change Happens – Teens Prove It

Recent national surveys have shown that the way people communicate has changed radically in the past few years. This is not news to many of us in the small business world or those who are parents of teens. 

One of the findings is that men under 30 don’t read paper-based media. They use social media almost exclusively. And this switch can have a big impact on your business if you are trying to reach them, hire them, or keep them as employees. 

First off, they don’t wear watches.  The owner of a grocery store in Los Angeles noticed this about his teen employees.  “It was hilarious,” he says, “they would go on break and they’d just stay on break.”  His solution?  Wall clocks everywhere.

If you hire teen employees, make sure you know the laws that regulate them, especially regulations concerning work hours. There are also restrictions on what tasks teens can perform. For example, teens under age 18 can’t work as cashiers in establishments selling alcohol. Also, teens can be more vulnerable to sexual harassment and you, the employer, are responsible to enforce appropriate workplace conduct. Sometimes teens don’t have the maturity to understand boundaries.

Trying to make teens fit into the mold that we grew up around, such as posting paper schedules on a bulletin board or assuming they know how to behave themselves with customers and other employees just won’t work anymore. One of the best solutions I’ve found in these situations is to ask the teen what the best way to communicate with them is, and then use it.  Plus you have raised their esteem!

-Tom Luhnow, GSDBA CEO