How come the minimum working age is not 13? (Las Vegas: house, neighborhoods)

[winter-rabbit]

For Nevada, 16 is the minimum working age. That's not good.

When I was really young, I couldn't wait to turn 13 so I could work at the supermarket to make money. Granted you could only work 12 hours/week and not later than 8pm. I didn't like asking my parents for money. I saved up $10K before turning 15. This was making $3.75/hour.

When my son turns 13 in a few years, I want him to get a job.

Is it easy to collect enough signatures with people in this state to get a 13 working age on the next ballot? Or folks here feel threatened by worker younglings?

[Vegas_Cabbie]

13..? Dear God no.
Maybe 15, but 13 is insane.

[von949]

Bad idea.

I had a summer job with the city and side jobs when I was 14. It was a huge distraction from my school work. Once I started working and making my own money, I started growing up too fast and losing my childhood. I started when I was 12 years old with a lawn mower and rake knocking on doors in the neighborhoods. Im 34 now and wish I would have enjoyed playing more sports instead or working.

Do you really want your 13 year old to enter the work force ASAP? I'm setting things in motion now so that my kids won't have to even think about a job while in school. There are already enough distractions at school and home. A job will just add to a their stress level.

[MSchu]

paper route...

[Raiderman]

I had a paper route at 9, and my first "real" job picking cucumbers on a farm in Massachusetts at 12. As long as grades don't slip, I don't think there should be a minimum age at all. It should be up to each family to decide.

[von949]

Originally Posted by MSchu

paper route...

Nope. Not in Las Vegas. LVRJ requires a vehicle(preferable truck or van) to cover a couple of zip codes during the wee hours of the morning. The days of riding a bike to throw a basket case full of papers to a front yard are done. Our "paper boy" drives an older Dodge Caravan full of news papers and delivers before 5am. Probably delivers about 2000 papers daily to make about $400-500 a week.

[Vegas_Cabbie]

If you were a business owner, would you want 12-13 years olds working for you?

[yellowsnow]

I started working at 12 too. There are jobs a 13yo can do. Yardwork, washing cars, house cleaning, babysitting. These can all be done in your neighborhood. If your 13yo wants to work, he can. Plus he would probably make more money doing this kind of thing in a relatively affluent area than he would flipping burgers. And in a way it's teaching some entrepreneurial skills. He has to go out and get the jobs and market himself.

[von949]

Or you can have your kids sell LVRJs in front of the grocery store or in front of IHOP. The only downside would be that an adult might have to be with them.

I see this in front of my local Smiths every Sunday.

[a bag of it]

I don't know if things have changed, but I am only 22 and I started working at 14 as a dishwasher. I was required to get a work permit, and there were some restrictions that I don't remember. I see nothing wrong with kids that age working, and if they don't want to play sports it is a great alternative that will teach them the value of a dollar better than any lecture ever could.