“Often, there is talk about employers being dissatisfied with students working part-time. But we were missing the perspective of the other side; we were interested in the students’ opinion. Three quarters of them in our survey rated their experience with employers during part-time jobs as generally good, yet the vast majority of students carry at least one negative experience from a part-time job,” commented Radek Schich, director of GTS Alive, on the survey results.

“Students often complain, for example, about changing pay conditions during the job, unpleasant and dismissive behavior from the boss or more experienced colleagues, or a different length of working hours and job duties than agreed. Poor communication from employers or an overall negative atmosphere at the workplace is also a problem,” added Radek Schich.

Half of the students work both during holidays and the school year, while forty percent work only during holidays. More than a third of students look for a part-time job several weeks in advance, another third even several months in advance. Only one in seven students looks for a part-time job at the last minute.

Students most often search for part-time jobs on online job portals. The second most common way is through parents and other relatives. Next is searching on social networks and through friends. According to the survey results, almost no student would accept a wage lower than 100 CZK per hour. On the other hand, only one in thirteen students demands an hourly rate of 200 CZK or more.

Students most often work in restaurants or brick-and-mortar fast food establishments. Next comes working in a store or selling at a stall. Third most common is work in a field related to their studies or a paid internship. However, only just under a third of students have been on an internship related to their studied or desired field, with half of these internships being paid and half unpaid. Students who have never been on a field-related internship most often said it was because they tried to find one but were unsuccessful.

The main motivation for participating in part-time jobs is money for seventy percent of students and experience for twenty percent. Other reasons are marginal. When asked how they approach work, students rated themselves mostly positively. Nearly three quarters strive for maximum reliability and the best possible quality of work done. A quarter try to work rather well but do not overexert themselves. Almost no one chose the option that they try to get the work done as quickly as possible without much regard for quality or reliability.

Selected typical responses to the open-ended question about the most positive experience students have had with a part-time job:

Part-time job during the Shakespeare Festival, where you meet great people, work in culture, and it’s a job you look forward to.

Part-time job in a cafeteria, I worked with women older than me, but we got along well. The work wasn’t complicated, I had regular working hours, and I wasn’t overworked. Pay was 110 CZK per hour.

I have a part-time job at a maternity hospital because I graduated from a secondary medical school. The most positive experience was observing births or various procedures in the operating room. The job motivated me to choose my university field!

I work as a sound technician and lately I only hear praise. So basically I listen to music, get paid for it, and others compliment me.

I tutored a boy in a very nice family. They paid for my transport to their town, offered me a ride from the station by car, provided refreshments... but mostly they were kind and accommodating. After the contract expired, they asked for private tutoring.

Two weeks working cashier/warehouse in a bookstore: friendly employers, meaningful work, good pay. The same for a job at their Book World event.

We received a mass email at school looking for workers for a ropes course. It’s the best part-time job I’ve ever had. I work outdoors all day in the fresh air, move around, and talk to people. People aren’t unpleasant because the ropes park is in a nice environment. I’m glad I took it. I’ve worked there two months, and it gave me a lot of experience. I definitely won’t give up the ropes park!

The only part-time job I could get was catering (through a friend). I’ve been there almost a year, and it really depends on the event, the manager, the job duties, etc. The best experience was a gala lunch at Prague Castle, where our president and the Israeli president were present. Great experience even though I was only a waitress!

I work for a book e-shop, where I process orders, create them, and sell goods in the store. I can say I have the best management. They are accommodating, the hourly wage is net (not gross), so you know what you get. Also, we are on a first-name basis, and the atmosphere is friendly without distinctions.

I have worked for one employer for five years and have only the best experience. I enjoy the work; pay is very good, hours are flexible, and sometimes there is a nice bonus for well-done work. I also have many benefits like regular employees. I enjoy and am fulfilled by the job. I work in a food warehouse. Oh, and we have a great team.

This year I’m working as a cashier for the first time. The manager who hired me assured me I had nothing to fear and was right — experienced colleagues trained me perfectly and even now, when I don’t know something, I just ask and they help me. No insults, very kind and willing. When I signed the contract, they patiently explained every part. On their own initiative.

The manager was accommodating with scheduling shifts when my parents insisted that school during the year is an absolute priority and almost didn’t want to allow the part-time job.

This summer, the manager at my mom’s work offered me a part-time job to handle the archive in their office. I originally wanted to keep this summer free, so I wasn’t actively looking for a job, and I’m glad the opportunity came up. I commute with my mom, the team is nice, and the shift agreement is definitely the best and most flexible I’ve experienced so far. So I can even go on vacation to Venice with my boyfriend next week despite the job.

Cleaning in a tire manufacturing company. The base rate of 150 CZK per hour is more pleasant than the typical 100–120 CZK offered by supermarkets, etc. Over time I was trained on machines, so I stopped cleaning and worked in production. After all bonuses and premiums, the average hourly rate reaches 220 CZK per hour, which would be hard to find in other part-time jobs. I don’t particularly enjoy the work but appreciate it.

Selected typical responses to the open-ended question about the most negative experience students have had with a part-time job:

Office administration, where I waited months to get an assignment (and wasn’t paid during that time), but as soon as I got the assignment, I had to immediately make time and finish it as soon as possible.

Currently it’s my manager; her power has gone to her head, and today she didn’t even give me a lunch break. But her approach has been passive-aggressive and unpleasant for a long time.

An arrogant supervisor (foreman), constant ‘bullying’ because of standards we then raised, and permanent staff hated us for it.

No contract, illegally low pay, working with 25kg bags; after two weeks, I was fired because they needed a place for a permanent employee.

Part-time job in an ice cream shop where I worked eight hours and at the end of the day the owner gave me 200 CZK and didn’t say a word.

It was at a swimming pool. They gave me few shifts, little money, and treated part-timers like trash. I had little money and didn’t even get half the pay I was supposed to get, and at the end, the manager yelled at me and my mom (who’s an HR specialist and knows the laws, so she came with me) in front of all the guests. Horrible, since then I’m afraid to be employed anywhere.

Chaos everywhere — in management and in the store, an unpleasant, self-centered boss with a huge ego who looked down on everyone.

I work in an ice cream stand, and dealing with people can be quite negative; people can be rude, cheeky, grumpy… it sometimes ruins my day, or when the machine doesn’t work properly and people get even grumpier.

These were my first two part-time jobs. The first was serving in an ice cream shop (which is totally not my field), but a friend offered it to me and I, as a young person, wanted money. I had to leave after three weeks because of brutal bullying by employees of both the ice cream shop and the neighboring restaurant we were connected with. The second job I did for three years behind a bar, where again there was bullying by coworkers and other employees. The bullying was mostly because of my appearance, and it saddens me.

Once I worked as a cashier in a supermarket. The managers were, to put it bluntly, slap-worthy, treated employees terribly, even vulgarly. Every time I went to work, I felt like crying. Mental health problems were followed by physical ones, since I suffer from severe scoliosis and had to either sit for 4 hours at the register without moving or stand for 4 hours. When I asked for more frequent shifts, I was told it was my problem.

The restaurant owner promised nice accommodation at the place, but after working the weekend, we were not paid and housed in a small room meant for 11 people. The owner stopped communicating and claimed we had agreed to this.

Among negative experiences, I would definitely include the cleaning company owner who basically “cheated” me. She owed me wages for almost two months and eventually paid me an hourly rate different from what she promised. I didn’t have the courage to complain at the time, though it violated the contract. Since then, I carefully check everything in contracts against practice.

At my very first part-time job, the boss was terribly mean — yelling at us, giving impossible tasks — sanding a moldy fence in half a day and then painting it — we didn’t have enough paint and went very slowly, but he had no understanding, threatened to deduct from our already low pay (77 CZK) for not working, called us incompetent, and demanded many things at once. It motivated me to study well and never see that man again.

Unsympathetic and arrogant managers in an unnamed company yelled at me across the warehouse, targeted me because I looked young and confused, and occasionally made mistakes. When something went wrong, they acted as if it was a problem to help me.

I worked in an unnamed fast food chain, where I spilled a tray of hot bacon and fat on myself because of a wet floor. I burned my hands to the second degree. They showed no concern. I had to stay on the floor for half an hour without treatment, then they sprayed me with panthenol and put ice on it (which is against regulations). They didn’t treat me, didn’t record the injury in the accident book, and wanted to deal with insurance only after 2 years (supposedly because the insurance company wouldn’t get to it sooner).

Poorly described ad (did not accurately describe the work), very demanding working conditions to reach the promised hourly rate. If work volume wasn’t met, only minimum wage was paid, which was not mentioned in the ad. Very early waking up due to bus transport of all employees to the hall where work was done. 12-hour shifts with only one 30-minute break, and we had to bring food and drink from home. No possibility to prepare or buy anything on site, and drinking during work was not allowed.

I was trained by classmates who started a week before me, and the next day I went to the store alone. The employer was very arrogant and didn’t hesitate to curse for a bad word and still owes me money. I signed the contract only after all work was done. Hygiene conditions didn’t exist despite it being a food and drink stand.

(responses from students left in their original wording, including typos and spelling mistakes)

Notes for editors:

GTS Alive s.r.o. in the Czech Republic issues and manages ISIC student cards and ISIC Scholar pupil cards, ITIC teacher cards, and, to a lesser extent, other cards. The company was founded in August 2000. Its predecessor in the Czech Republic was GTS International. GTS Alive s.r.o. is part of the international GTS Alive Group, headquartered in Prague, with branches in seventeen countries on four continents.

GTS Alive, through the ISIC PORT chip identification system, also provides many elementary and secondary schools with secure access to their buildings and an electronic attendance system. The company also facilitates travel or accident insurance for students.

For more information, contact:

Jan Šimral, media representative of GTS Alive
Tel.: +420 737 944 370
E-mail: info@jansimral.com