How to Help a Teen Negotiate Wages

Negotiating wages is tricky for everyone, but due to the specific policies of large employers across America, young workers may have a lot more trouble than most. Looking into the common practices of retail giants and fast-food employers reveals that these companies are banking on being able to pay teen workers sub-standard wages because teens (so the logic goes) tend to live at home and have less financial obligations.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

1. First of all, help your child value themselves. Negotiations will not work unless the young worker has overall feelings of confidence and knowledge of their situation. Part of this is showing your teen that you value them by expressing positivism and encouragement, and recognizing their achievements.
2. Talk about values. Again, these basic ideas are the fundamentals for dealing with work concerns and other issues. Talk about values like honesty, hard work and optimism, making sure that these things are in the teen's tool belt.
3. Support the young worker in their requests for fair compensation. Encourage them to ask for fair wages relative to area pay scales and other conditions. Help them to be able to see through some of the common ruses perpetrated by hiring staff, such as the idea that a teen just works for "folding money" or is somehow less valuable than another worker. Talking through potential challenges can make your teen relative more able to deal directly with tricky hiring staff when he goes to interview.
4. Acknowledge the other side of the coin. Explain the general hiring policies of large companies to the teen, so that he understands the LIMITS of negotiating wages. Rationally lay out the idea of supply and demand, and note that unfortunately, regardless of a winning strategy for negotiating, rigid company policies mean that in the end, a raise or higher starting pay just may not be possible.
5. Encourage your teen to practice "lateral mobility" and choose wisely between employers. Explain that jumping on the first job offer is generally not a good idea; you can also describe how putting subtle pressure on a local employer by comparing them to another one can work to a young applicant's advantage. Encourage a young job seeker to find the job that is right for them, not only in terms of pay, but in terms of good working conditions, and remind them that sometimes good working conditions are more important than an extra quarter per hour.