First jobs are a major milestone for young people, shaping what conditions and behaviours they see as normal and acceptable throughout their working life.
Most people experience their first jobs as teenagers in informal roles – babysitting, tutoring, summer camps, farm work, retail, hospitality, and other casual roles that sit outside the protections and structures of formal employment.
As a result of limited work experience and bargaining power, financial insecurity, and overrepresentation in casual, low-paid work, young people can be vulnerable to exploitation in the workplace.

Despite this, few resources help young people prepare to find safe, fair work. TASC’s Fair Work Programme equips young people at the start of their careers with the knowledge to recognise fair and unfair work and the confidence and skills to advocate for themselves in the workplace, whatever that workplace looks like.