Here in San Antonio, Texas, getting summertime work is horrid. The pay usually teeters in the $7 to $9 area, but for your efforts, you get part-time work of 20 hours or less that doesn’t amount to anything, or you get a full-time job in the hot Texas summer sun that puts you on your feet from sunrise to sunset and isn’t worth it. For those who live off their income on their own and not with parents, it’s not uncommon to see many kids working two jobs to pay their bills and living in over-crowded small apartments.
San Antonio has a tourist-based economy, so the majority of the jobs are service-sector work. There’s very little college-grad work (except in the medical industry) and what college-level jobs there are can be difficult to get. As a result, many fresh college grads compete for summer/seasonal jobs with kids in high school and ones still in college. It’s kind of sad really. Most of the job banks steer you towards commission sales of insurance, AT&T;’s new “U-Verse,” coupon books, knife sets, and just junk in general. Even many of the stores that are hiring, like Best Buy, try to steer you towards commission too. Realistically, with the economy what it is, commission won’t add up to anything and commission-based jobs should be avoided.
I still remember my first sales job, because it was so painful on my feet. I was told to come in for an interview, and did it OK. Then they said “come in for an all-day evaluation.” I didn’t understand, but said “OK” and came in. That “all-day evaluation” was door-to-door business sales of coupon books. Needless to say, every place we went had “no soliciting” signs on them, told us to get lost (among lesser-polite ways to get rid of us), I was in hard rubber dress shoes, and we made no money. The trainer swore to me that he makes $70 a day and you can quickly become your own manager, but I was in nicer clothes than he was, so I doubted it. I ended up leaving after just one day.
Then there are the temp agencies. I must have applied to every one in the city, but thanks to SA’s economy compounded with the national economic problems, they’re full of lay-offs from other jobs and college grads who couldn’t find permanent work after finishing school, so even they are getting tough to find work through.
Then the summer ends. The effect of teens and college kids fleeing their jobs to go back to school is so marginal it’s not even noticeable because many of them will keep their jobs if they can. Some kids who are in that transition period after high school and college will keep on working and abandon college, because once bills pile on and they’re forced into the life of the responsible adult, it’s hard to take time off to go to college. For some college students, it’s hard to go back the next semester if you’re financially struggling and need to make money now.
So that’s life in San Antonio’s summer job market. Beware the “come in for an all-day evaluation” because that means being told to get lost while doing door-to-door sales in a world where no one likes solicitors. Seriously. Your feet will thank you for it.
