I strongly support doing paid work in high school.
The reasons:
-Respect for working with others and following directions even if you don’t want to do something gives a student a preview of real work.
-Respect for the public even if someone isn’t polite or right.
- Spending money. Teaches kids how to manage their money and how much time a $240 pair of jeans actually takes to make.
-Soft skills. Just so many including looking someone in the eye, communicating in a normal tone, being cheerful, so many others.
-Balance. For kids who work multiple jobs or those who work during the school year learning to balance all of ones responsibilities. Extra points in my book for a kid who does a sport and also works.
I don’t think kids should be “building a resume” or using a job to get into college. Not everything is about getting into college. To me the idea of getting a kid an internship or paid job that isn’t a kid job misses the point entirely. YMMV. My oldest had both a kid job and a paid internship last Summer. Learned way more in the kid job. Was the manager this year and earned a lot.
I’d hire someone in a minute who worked from an early age. It tells me something about their work ethic (and possibly about their parent’s work ethic). Most of my kids friends friends work. They are mostly from wealthy families and many attend private high schools that cost over 50K. But the parents still insist the kids get a job.
My kids don’t work during the school year, they both do sports and have a heavy academic load. But the '22 will get a job in college. No idea what yet, but I’m sure it will be helpful.