Can 15-Year-Olds Work at Major Retailers Like Walmart in New York State?

[weiking]

I was wondering if anyone knows of any jobs in new york state for a 15 year old boy? I am not look for yard work and baby sitting. I want real places. Also if you could give specific places like walmart not retail store. i need real places that you know hire 15 year olds.

 

[turbo]

Do you want year-round work? Full or part-time? When I was your age (and younger), I worked full-time as a groundskeeper for the local cemetery all summer, with part-time work there in spring and fall. During the school year, I tried to get pick-up jobs shoveling snow, etc on my days off or after school.

Most chain stores will not hire you because you are a minor. If you have a mom-and-pop store nearby, you may be able to get at least part-time work stocking shelves, pricing items, etc.

 

[skeptic2]

I got my first job at 15. I washed cars at a new and used car dealer. At the time minimum wage was $1/hr and they paid me $0.75/hr.

 

[mbisCool]

Not sure about New York but in Washington you can get jobs at various places at 15; however, you are very limited in what you can do. For example if working at Macdonalds you will probably be restricted to things such as cleaning for minimum wage until you are 16.

 

[Janus]

You'll also be limited to what hours you can work and these change depending on whether or not school is in session. This works out to 3 hrs a day on school days and 8 hrs on non-school days up to a maximum of 18 hrs a week.

In New York, at age 15 you will also need to get an employment certificate.

I don't know about New York, but here in Oregon, my daughter couldn't find a part time job until she turned 17 when Old Navy hired her.

 

[turbo]

My, things have changed in 40+ years. I knew that the sexton of the cemetery hired kids to clip and mow, etc and when I was 14, I asked if I could work for him. There were other kids working for him, all several years older than me, and they were a bunch of slackers. At the end of the summer, he gave me hours in the fall to do late-season trimming, and the next spring, he called me up and asked if I could work full-time in the summer. I jumped at the chance, and he didn't hire back any of the other kids. I was putting in at least 40 hours/week at minimum wage. If kids can't work full-time in the summer, they are missing out on what could be valuable experience for later in life. My father was trying to support a family of 6 on a mill-worker's wage, so all my earnings went right into savings for college.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

yeah, when I was in high school I had to get a signed permission slip from my parents and present it at my school to receive a work certificate. this is supposed to show that the parents and school feel the kid is doing well enough in school that working shouldn't interfere.
around here I think most places won't hire unless you're at least 16. my first job was working at a movie theatre when I was 16.
at around the age of 15 to 16 your best bet is likely lawn care or maybe a paper route(though around here most paper delivery guys are older and have cars). I may be brain washed by tv and movies but if you're in nyc proper and have a bike you might look into courrier or delivery work.

edit: and you might check with the school to see if they have listings for after school jobs.

 

[Astronuc]

My, things have changed in 40+ years. I knew that the sexton of the cemetery hired kids to clip and mow, etc and when I was 14, I asked if I could work for him. There were other kids working for him, all several years older than me, and they were a bunch of slackers. At the end of the summer, he gave me hours in the fall to do late-season trimming, and the next spring, he called me up and asked if I could work full-time in the summer. I jumped at the chance, and he didn't hire back any of the other kids. I was putting in at least 40 hours/week at minimum wage. If kids can't work full-time in the summer, they are missing out on what could be valuable experience for later in life. My father was trying to support a family of 6 on a mill-worker's wage, so all my earnings went right into savings for college.

Yeah - I had my first job when I was 14. I worked in a bike shop and was paid in cash (no taxes). Most of my work was repairing bicycles or upgrading them, selling and assembling new bicycles. I did that for a couple of years, and then moved to a different area of the city too far away to continue working at the shop.

When I was 16 I worked in a gardening center for about 1 year (full time summer - part-time during school year and on weekends) while in 11th grade. In 12th grade, I worked in a grocery store until I started university.

At 15, one will find that the types of jobs are limited to mostly labor, because one simply has no 'job experience'.

 

[arildno]

I find it sad that, for no good reason at all, persons in their early teens are severely hampered in their efforts at getting a paid job, rather than having to waste years in the school system, much against their will (and to the detriment of able, and willing co-pupils who are deprived of the milieu of education they deserve). This situation is far worse here in Norway than in the US, where this vice has been turned into a "virtue", by saying one is opposed to "child-labour", and that youngsters who might like to try out apprenticeships "deserve" wage rates comparable to fully qualified adults. Furthermore, the rigid state system of supervising enterepeneurs who might wish to hire youngsters basically requires that the business must set aside at least one full-time employee whose only job is to "supervise" the work of the young, all in the interests in "the best possible apprenticeship", of course.

The result is predictable: No businesses are willing to hire ANY youngsters, due to the alarming costs involved.

 

[Astronuc]

My dad used to service/repair our cars. One of his jobs growing up was working at a gasoline station/garage and servicing/driving trucks. He also did house maintenance and plumbing. By the time I was ten years old, I would assist him, first simply passing tools to him, then later (by time I was 12) doing the actual work under his supervision. We did the repair/servicing of cars, lawn mower, washing machine/dryer - basically any mechanized tool or appliance. I still do much of the mechanical maintenance on the cars.

I'm all for apprenticeships.

 

[turbo]

Aside from rain-days, the only time I missed at the cemetery (with permission from the sexton) was to fight a forest fire in north central Maine. Some of us Boy Scouts had received training in fighting forest fires, and comprised a "hot-shot" crew. We worked independently with no adult supervision. It was hard work, lugging indian pumps to put out hot spots and hauling 3" fire hoses to knock down active fires. Since we were so far from the pumper, with no radios, the only way we could attach a new section of hose was to put several Z-crimps in the hose using our hands and feet to knock the pressure down. Like I said, hard work, but they were paying us more than twice minimum wage (essentially what the adult fire-fighters got). Our safety gear consisted of leather gloves and metal hard-hats. Today, any adults that condoned such activity would be accused of child endangerment.