Summer jobs season approaching at Shore

OCEAN CITY, N.J. (AP) - With Memorial Day soon approaching, it’s summer jobs season at the New Jersey shore.

Business owners tell The Philadelphia Inquirer (https://bit.ly/2oNZd6i) fewer international students have been applying for the seasonal positions in recent years, opening the door for more locals to get in on the action.

Businesses in Ocean City such as Gillian’s Wonderland Pier and numerous eateries hire hundreds of workers between the ages of 14 and 21 to start around mid-June. Most get paid a little more than minimum wage.

Above all, the business owners say, intelligence and an outgoing attitude is a must.

John Kavchok, personnel director for the Wonderland Pier, said most summer employees work six days a week and start at $8.50 an hour. Among the fringe benefits are a 25 percent discount on pizza and free rides.

Speaking of rides - ride operators must be 16 or older under state law, and Kavchok said the pier chooses employees for those jobs who are responsible and attentive.

Holly Kisby, general manager of Shriver’s Water Taffy, said she is wary of job-seekers who arrive with a parent in tow, “because the parent’s usually making them do it.

“I like the ones who apply by themselves and keep calling, because they’re the ones looking for work,” she said.

Marking the sweet treat involves tasks such as lifting 50- and 100-pound trays of ingredients from one machine to another.

“It’s hard, hot work,” she said.

___

Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, https://www.inquirer.com