Where should an 18 year old apply for a first job?
Fast food jobs are a popular high school and post high school employment option. Unfortunately, the work environment is not that great and depending on the management or franchise owner it can be really awful. My daughter and her friends worked at a Subway franchise and it was horrible. The manager was always swearing at them and lying to them. Now this is not an indictment of Subway as I think there are a good franchise opportunity but the store owner/manager are really responsible for the way employees are treated and if you work in fast food you may feel like you are treated badly. Also, in fast food you will not have a whole lot of potential for promotion. It is really a job that most people can't wait to quit and move on to a better job or a real career. The best bet for a starter job is a grocery store. I know this may not sound exciting but these can actually work out to be good jobs with advancement and potential for the future. Grocery store chain jobs are ideal starter jobs because they will usually be open to flexing schedules for school. My daughter had her job at Albertson's almost all the way through college before she became a teacher. One of her friends started afterwards and he manages his own store now. This is a good job indeed and good benefits and good future for advancement if you decide to make a career. Also, if the grocery chain has corporate offices you may be able to parlay a store position into going to work at a corporate distribution center. I recently met a young employee at WinCo Foods working in their corporate office and he was already working his way to great career with good benefits in that company. Because these grocery store jobs are often union, there are policies and procedures in place for how people are treated. There is no yelling or strange stuff that is a part of the restaurant/fast food world. My daughter came home from her first day at work at Albertsons and she said she thought she had died and gone to heaven – the work environment was so much better than the Subway sandwich franchise where she had worked. She worked in that job through her college years before she got her degree and began her career. Best wishes...
I haven't worked in 5 years. Will anyone hire with a 5 year gap on my resume?
Yes, I think you can. But to be honest I would say on the applications you were dealing with personal family issues that have been resolved. It is not a lie. But if they ask I guess you do have to tell them. And I am sure you are looking for a job that will not hurt your back in any way. I wish you the best. I have not worked in a while due to an illness. So I know a little how you feel. And I plan on trying to go back to work part time, well start looking in the middle of June. Due to some family obligations.
Is it normal for office jobs to have long hours?
I just got my first office job after college last year and it's really shocking that I work consistently from 9am to 7pm Mon - Fri. When I complain to my parents, they tell me that my long hours are normal and that's the way office jobs are. They said only low paying jobs like McDonald's are 9-5. Is that true?