Perm Krai Teens: Over 2,000 Seek Summer Jobs

In summer, teenagers« desire to earn money coincides with companies» efforts to find temporary staff. However, when hiring very young workers, many important aspects must be considered, not just the legal restrictions. Why companies are now willing to hire even teenagers and what must change within a company to accommodate such employees was discussed at a specialized Avito session at the Labor Forum by Roman Gubanov, Director of Development at Avito Rabota, and Elena Faber, former Director of the Corporate Academy at Magnit.

In Perm Krai, more than 2,200 teenagers are looking for work this summer, reports the hh.ru service. Most often they expect jobs in services, warehouse logistics, and delivery.

Why They Started Hiring the Very Young

When speaking of «youth,» employers used to often mean graduates or at least college or university students. Today the approach has changed, and they started hiring 18-year-olds (and even 16-year-olds — more on them below) without any skills. One of the main reasons is the demographic situation.

«Now there are about 26% fewer young people in the labor market than ten years ago. Accordingly, we are forced to be more focused in our interaction with this category of the population,» noted Roman Gubanov. «Speak their language. Choose tools that allow us to attract, adapt, retain, and develop the younger generation within our companies.»

The share of young people in food service and retail is much higher than in industry. Therefore, one often hears that the workforce is aging.

Employers are forced to change requirements: for example, the increase in vacancies for people without experience is primarily aimed at the young. Although in fact this also benefits the older generation: there is an opportunity to master a new specialty from scratch, learning directly on the job.

Stereotypes About Gen Z and Their Approach to Work

Everyone has had their say about the differences between Gen Z and previous generations — Millennials and Baby Boomers. But when it comes to approach to work, the three generations have much in common.

«According to our observations and research and in the opinion of employers, this generation is not very different from any other,» commented the Avito expert. «The factors on which Gen Z base their decision to choose an employer or to continue working at a certain place are no different from ours.»

Roman Gubanov examined several stereotypes about Gen Z and explained how their behavior model affects the labor market as a whole.

Stereotype 1: Salary Is Not So Important to Gen Z

This is not the case, the expert noted. The main factor in choosing a job for all generations remains the size of the salary. Yes, Gen Z more often strive for a flexible schedule to maintain work-life balance. But a flexible schedule will not entice them if the salary is low.

Stereotype 2: Gen Z«s Increased Demandingness

The statement is largely true. Young people pay more attention to basic requirements for companies, including workplace safety.

«Due to how the internet has permeated our lives, job seekers have more opportunities to find out what the organization they want to join is really like. What are the actual working conditions at that company,» explained Roman Gubanov. «What does this mean? That it is important to work on the employer«s reputation.»

Stereotype 3: Infancy of Gen Z Workers

This generation, due to its youth, indeed thinks more about free time and entertainment. But it is ready for part-time work and flexible employment. This is evident from the flourishing of services specifically oriented toward such work formats.

Stereotype 4: Want It All and Right Away

«Actually, this is not entirely true,» Roman Gubanov reported. «According to our research, the initial expectations of young people when they finish their education and enter the labor market are not very different from the median. Interestingly, after gaining experience, their expectations may even drop a bit. But then they grow by about 15–20% each year.»

Real Example: Teenagers Working in a Store

Teenagers aged 16 and older are most often hired by large companies, such as delivery services or retail chains. Two years ago, the Magnit chain took notice of potential workers of this age. This happened against the backdrop of the boom in online marketplaces and the outflow of personnel from retail stores to them.

«An additional one and a half to two percent of the workforce in stores — in conditions of serious shortage, this is good potential,» explained Elena Faber, who was then heading the corporate academy. «But we understood that we needed to significantly change business processes and change our internal attitude toward working with children.»

The project started in September 2024; by the end of that year, almost three thousand 16- and 17-year-olds — mostly school students — were already working in the chain«s stores. In small towns, there were more applicants: teenagers there have fewer part-time job options.

What to Consider When Hiring Teenagers

School students, as a rule, do not set big goals that require working for years.

«Teenagers are not at all concerned about survival and rent; they have no goal of buying a car or an apartment,» noted Elena Faber. «They need money for clothes or game skins, a manicure, sneakers, something for a pet.»

To make work comfortable for teenagers and productive for their employer, companies should follow certain rules. Elena Faber listed and commented on them.

All hiring processes must be digitized. «Kids want to enter with a click — very quickly,» she noted. «A teenager won«t wait. If you slow down anywhere, they will go to another employer.»

Processes for leaving and returning must be fast. «A teenager also wants to leave with a click. That is, «I worked today, I»ll leave in a week because of exams, and come back in a month.« Unfortunately, our store directors were not ready for such an attitude. It was a serious challenge for us.»

Instead of monotony — change of tasks. «This generation does homework while simultaneously listening to podcasts and replying in chat. Multitasking is essentially a method of maintaining attention, their survival method. And that is a superpower of teenagers. But what do we do? «Here»s some canned peas, here«s a five-meter shelf, please stock it.» A different approach is needed to set tasks for these kids and rotate those tasks during the workday.»

Consider that teenagers do not bring their friends. «Referral programs don«t work with them: teenagers come to see the business from the inside and become holders of sacred knowledge. They don»t bring their friends because they don«t want them to also be holders of that knowledge.»

Be prepared to work with teenagers« parents. «We didn»t expect this at all. But it turned out that way: parents come and ask questions; if a child complained somewhere, they think it«s like at school.»

Change business processes. «We had to change a bunch of instructions and regulations, allocate tasks specifically for this audience, and create a professional standard for them.»

Shift the emphasis in your recruitment campaign. «Teenagers are not interested in stories about a stable company and a career. They work here and now. You need to tell them: «We»ll give you interesting experience, show and tell you things, and also help you earn some money.« This is important to them.»

Earlier, we reported that young people suddenly fell in love with shift work.