What NJ kids now want as their first job

A new survey shows the most common first jobs for America’s kids in 2024. The research was done by the answering service pros at Voicenation.com.

A cool aspect of this is they broke it down state by state. So, for the nation as a whole, the top five most common first jobs for kids in America break down as follows.

Fast food workers 15%

Babysitter 12%

Retail Sales Associate 11%

Restaurant server 8%

Grocery store cashier 7%

In New Jersey, it’s a different story. Before I give the most common first job for a Jersey teen, the study shows the motivating factors for kids wanting to work as soon as they’re old enough to.

32% said for financial independence.

Closely following at 31% was to gain work experience.

28% said for responsibility, which is a pretty noble answer if you ask me.

19% answered that one of their reasons for wanting that first job was personal growth.

18% said they wanted a sense of independence.

My first job was as a janitor at a local independently owned grocery store. Clean up on aisle five? I was that guy, and the guy who cleaned the toilets and mopped floors, hauled out garbage, and even cleaned the machinery used in the deli after closing. No, my job wasn’t the most common.

In New Jersey, the most common job for a teenager first is a retail associate. have that as their very first work experience.

In second place is babysitting with 14%.

Third is fast food at 12%.

Followed by grocery store cashier and dishwasher at 7% each.

Whatever your kid ends up doing as a first job, be proud they want to work. And don’t be that helicopter parent who tries going in with them for the interview. They’ll thank you later for not doing that.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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