Summary/Critical Response - Assignment Example

Article Summary In “Working at McDonald’s,” Amitai Etzioni argues that be an employee at McDonald’s can be a downfall for the education and future career of a teenager. The hours that a teenager pulls in at a fast food restaurant becomes so extensive that many of them decide to drop out of high school to continue their job. Since it is just more money in their pocket, leaving school hardly fazes them. Unfortunately, what they learn by working in a fast food establishment hardly prepares them for anything in the future; the skills that they are barely taught are only useful for that specific job.

Furthermore, since teenagers often live at home while they take on these jobs, they do not learn the value of a dollar. Instead of saving their paychecks to purchase something beneficial, such as a college education or saving up for an apartment or house of their own, they use their money to buy material possessions. They do not help their families out, which means they live rent-free, often do not attend school, and still have a big wad of cash burning the inside of their pocket. Etzioni makes it clear that the best thing a teenager can do is forfeit a part-time job and remain in school for the sake of their future.