Hot Prospects for Summer Jobs

School’s been out for weeks at Ventura County high schools, and many of the summer’s hot jobs were snapped up soon after the last bell rang.

But it’s not too late for young summertime slackers to swap their swimsuits and sunscreen for time cards and paychecks.

Ventura County offers a number of youth employment services. And positions for the vacation season are not yet full.

Seventeen-year-old Andy Lindeman of Camarillo is one of six students hired by the city’s street division for summer employment.

The recent graduate of Cornerstone Christian School in Camarillo applied at the city’s youth employment office, went on one interview and started work three days later.

For the past four weeks, he has reported for street-painting duty at 7:30 in the morning. During the day, he sets out cones and stencils, helps with the painting and scrapes excess paint from the stencils before heading home at 4 p.m.

“It pays pretty well, and the set schedule is nice,” said Lindeman, who is working to save money for his education. He’ll attend Pacific Christian College in Fullerton in the fall.

His supervisor, Tom Medina, said the student employees also assist the city’s tree crews, sign installers and landscape irrigators.

“They’re really helpful to us,” he said, adding that many students return the following summer to work for the city.

Though Lindeman and other area students started working just after school was out, the county’s supply of summer jobs is far from exhausted. Youth employment counselors said that late starters should not worry about a lack of opportunities.

“I would encourage any young person to come in,” said Arlene Goldberg, executive director of the Conejo Youth Employment Service in Thousand Oaks. “There are no fees. . . . They have nothing to lose.”

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When students visit the Conejo office, they are given two job referrals and a one-on-one meeting with a counselor, who advises them on their individual job-hunting needs.

If the first referrals do not work out, applicants can come back and try again. New listings appear several times each day, she said.

During the school year, the service holds workshops on getting and keeping a job, including tips on how to dress for interviews and how to write a resume.

Goldberg said that kids often come into the office chewing gum and wearing shorts and T-shirts.

“They look like they’ve just come off the beach,” she said. Counselors advise applicants to pursue a “neat and clean” appearance for interviews and the workplace.

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Administrative assistant Ursula Barnacle, also of the Thousand Oaks program, said many of the current listings involve residential employment. House-painting, dog-walking, attic-cleaning and baby-sitting opportunities abound. But part- and full-time office and sales positions also are up for grabs.

The most popular jobs--working in video and music stores--are very hard to come by, Barnacle said.

The going rate across the county is $5 an hour to start, but some jobs, such as tutors, can pay as much as $15 an hour, she said.

Seven years ago, the Conejo program helped Victoria Chandler, then 17, find a job as a cashier at Burt’s Pharmacy in Newbury Park.

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Today she works as a bookkeeper at the pharmacy. It is her fourth position since she started with the company, and it sparked an interest that led her to business classes at Moorpark College. Chandler said she plans to become an accountant.

“[Working at the pharmacy] made me realize I like to deal with numbers,” she said. “It gave me an opportunity to look at something I might want to do in the future.”

Chandler said she credits the youth employment program for matching her with a job that could turn into a career. Standard employment agencies had very few appealing jobs for youth, she said. But businesses that listed at the youth program seemed to take kids more seriously.

Though the Conejo program offers job assistance for students as young as 13, organizers from other employment services advise that work is more difficult to find for those younger than 16.

“Fourteen- and 15-year-olds can’t use power tools,” said Barbara McHenry, a coordinator at Camarillo Youth Employment Services. And younger kids are not covered by workers’ compensation, she added.

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Ventura County also offers an Oxnard-based program that takes learning on the job literally: The program pays kids $5 an hour to work and take classes in remedial math and reading.

The Summer Youth Employment and Training Program is a federally funded service that was designed 30 years ago to improve workplace literacy. The program’s Oxnard facility has been around for about 20 years.

Applicants ages 14 to 21 are tested to determine their math and reading abilities. If they score below an eighth-grade level, and if administrators feel the program would benefit them, they are eligible for the work-study program, which includes morning classes and afternoon jobs.

Program director Efren Gore said students’ test scores have improved significantly after participating in the course.

The program teaches math and reading skills as they are used in the workplace, he said. For example, students learn to read time sheets, then they must use that skill for their afternoon jobs. Learning in the proper context helps them retain the information, he said.

This summer’s classes are full. But kids can start applying in April to participate next year. Information on the program is available at 385-8081.

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Simi Valley Youth Employment Service coordinator Sandra Thompson said she encourages homeowners and businesses to use the county’s youth employment services to find workers for a variety of jobs.

People who need help around the house, from painting and moving furniture to driving kids to camp, can call the city programs for assistance.

Help Wanted

The following is a listing of Ventura County’s youth employment programs that still have jobs available and are seeking additional listings for the summer:

* Camarillo Youth Employment Service: 482-0775.

* Conejo Youth Employment Service: 496-6868.

* Oxnard Boys’ & Girls’ Club Youth Employment Service: 487-4043.

* Simi Valley Youth Employment Service: 522-4473.

* Ventura Summer Youth Employment: 289-4920.