Kansas University student Kristen Bush already has one job this summer, working as a cocktail waitress at the Barrel House.
But the Wichita senior said she’ll soon be looking for another part-time job to help pay the bills, and if her search is anything like the last few she’s gone through in Lawrence, it won’t be pretty.
Bush said she applied at every restaurant on Massachusetts Street, and didn’t get hired at any, though she had years of experience as a waitress. She’s open to a number of other options, too, including retail or an on-campus job.
“I still wind up getting money from my parents,” she said. “Which is something neither of us like to do.”
Bush will join many other KU students, many of whom will return in the next few weeks, in facing a more competitive job market for the part-time jobs that help many students pay for college.
David Gaston, director of the University Career Center on campus, helps students find on- and off-campus jobs that fit their needs.
He said he’s seen a steady uptick in applications. Twice as many students as usual are seeking about 4,500 on-campus jobs — a figure that has held relatively steady, even in difficult economic times.
There’s been decreasing interest from outside employers, too, he said. An upcoming early August job fair for students attracted 35 employers last year. Just 20 have signed up so far.
He said several employers, however, remain interested in hiring students.
“This is more challenging, but for those that are persistent and keep a positive attitude, most of those folks are going to find a position, because there is stuff out there,” Gaston said.
Bill Longmire, owner of Pizza Shuttle, 1601 W. 23rd St., said his business likely will hire its usual complement of students as drivers and other positions as business begins to pick up after the slower summer months.
Business is good, he said, but the business will likely be “playing it as close to the vest as we can” with new hiring until the impacts of the new minimum wage law and potential changes to health insurance costs become known.
“We’re kind of in a wait-and-see mode,” he said.
At Wal-Mart, 3300 Iowa, the store has openings that would likely appeal to students, said store manager Scott Matchell. The store has maintained its employee levels, and still employs about 385 people, he said.
“We’re not having any kind of trouble at all,” he said.
Most of the open positions have been because of employee turnover, and are typically night and weekend cashier shifts, he said.
Mike Reid, director of marketing and communications for KU Memorial Unions, said the unions typically hire 200 to 300 part-time workers each year, and that number has held relatively steady this year.
At new-student orientations, Reed said he handed out many more business cards than he usually did, and heard a lot more interest from incoming freshmen in jobs.
“We usually ask them if they’re interested in employment. Typically, some of the parents will say, ‘No, we want them to concentrate on their studies this year,’” Reid said. “I didn’t really hear that much this year.”
Comments
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puddleglum (anonymous) says…
where/what is the barrel house?
must be a wichita club or something
mrbig (anonymous) says…
The barrel house is kind of like a piano bar which is where Last Call used to be.
knytphal (anonymous) says…
I do believe that Scott's last name is Matchell and not Hatchell.
mdrndgtl (anonymous) says…
This again? Okay, I'll say it: Strip.
sarahsmilehawk (anonymous) says…
My campus job only pays $7.50 an hour and sometimes I work as few as two hours per week, but I'm lucky to even have it.
SettingTheRecordStraight (anonymous) says…
And with the government's new wage mandate, we can expect unemployment to rise further.
govenorteacup (anonymous) says…
As a student you've got to be willing to fill out a ton of applications. Every grocery store, every box store, restaurants, campus jobs, etc.
salad (anonymous) says…
Cry me an effin' river. I had to work two jobs to make ends meet even AFTER I graduated, not to mention during school. It's supposed to be hard, our grandparents would have called it "character building". If we had to depend upon the current crop of whiners to re-fight WWII, all of Europe would be speakin' German.
phaederino (anonymous) says…
"As a student you've got to be willing to fill out a ton of applications. Every grocery store, every box store, restaurants, campus jobs, etc."
Every job I held as a youngster now seems to be held by a Spanish speaking person. I see it as a sign that our education system is getting much better. I could barely speak Spanish after College, but now High School age McDonalds and Wal-Mart workers are f l u e n t!
i'm sorry, I probably should have posted something more on-topic. I'm sure my observation has nothing to do with the ability of these youngsters to find work.
KU_cynic (anonymous) says…
As an addendum to this story, recognize that the newly mandated increase in the minimum wage renders entry-level employment of the kind mentioned in this article more expensive than ever for employer businesses.
This situation in Lawrence would be even worse if the "living wage" activists had their way.
Irish (Leslie Swearingen) says…
salad you have the character of a cockroach. Do you belong to that group of people who told me I am a sinner because I have a mixed race child, but then what can you expect from someone born after "the war."
I hope parents are helping their kids as much as they can in every way to make it though college.
When I eat out or have my hair done I tip well because I know they need it for college expenses.
There is a reason it is called a living wage. A wage that you and your family can live on. Eh?
Don't employers feel a little ashamed when their employees who are working hard for them, can't see a doctor, have to go to the food pantry, have to get food stamps?
KU_cynic (anonymous) says…
Don't government bureaucrats and socialist do-gooders feel a little ashamed . . .
... when there are workers -- especially young teenage workers looking to build life skills -- willing to work at $5 or $6 an hour but who are unaffordable for small businesses at the new minimum wage dictated by the federal government.
SettingTheRecordStraight (anonymous) says…
Irish,
Business is a transaction, not an episode of the Oprah Winfrey show. Direct your empathy toward charities, not government wage fixing.
volunteer (anonymous) says…
I hope Kristen applied at the place on Mass where I had breakfast a couple of weeks ago. All the servers seemed grumpy and wore dirty blue jeans.
I know getting up and working early is not pleasant, but if you work for tips please try to make eye contact and wash the clothes.
beatrice (anonymous) says…
KU-cynic: "Don't government bureaucrats and socialist do-gooders feel a little ashamed . . .when there are workers — especially young teenage workers looking to build life skills — willing to work at $5 or $6 an hour but who are unaffordable for small businesses at the new minimum wage dictated by the federal government."
I'm sorry, but I just rolled my eyes so hard it hurt my head.
You do know that the last minimum wage increase was signed into law by George W. Bush, don't you? He must be one of them there socialist do-gooders you mentioned.
gimpypad4 (anonymous) says…
Good luck to anyone who is trying to find a job.
Salad: I was also raised to work hard for what I got, but I was also taught to care about other people too by my Dad who was in WWII.
moonfly (anonymous) says…
pfft it's hard for everyone to find jobs right now, not just students.
Shardwurm (anonymous) says…
Think it's hard to find a job now? Wait until you graduate with your $80,000 degree and so many student loans that you have the equivilent of a mortgage payment to make.
Your Poly Sci degree will make you a great bartender...and your parents - who co-signed for you - will be paying the loans back for the rest of their lives.
Higher education is killing this generation.
KU raises tuition to meet funding gaps...yet the local community colleges are filled to the brim. Why? Because the cost of going to KU is obscene. Isn't there some economics professor 'researching' there who can explain to them that they could actually get more revenue if they lower the cost and attract those JCCC students?
Whatever. It's a scam and the next economic crisis will be because the Middle Class is being crushed by the ridiculous cost of so-called 'higher education.' The real education you're going to get is that you just got stiffed and would have been better off developing a trade skill as the payback on some college degrees is actually negative at this point.
was_freashpowder2 (Alexander Neighbors) says…
move to a big city