Employers Enforce No-Phone Rules for 500 Teen Workers as Safety and Focus Concerns Rise
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 22
Employers Enforce No-Phone Rules for 500 Teen Workers as Safety and Focus Concerns Rise
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 22
Summary
Morey’s Piers requires roughly 500 workers aged 14 to 19 to lock up their phones during summer shifts, part of a broader push by teen employers to curb device use on the job.
Safety and productivity are driving the bans: managers say teens operate rides reaching 60 mph, supervise pools and water slides, and miss routine tasks when downtime turns into scrolling.
Red Arrow Camp extended a no-phone policy to staff in 2021, saying counselors stay more present with campers and better able to focus without constant alerts.
Half of U.S. teens ages 12 to 17 spend at least four hours a day on screens, CDC data show, and heavier non-school screen use is linked to higher rates of depression and anxiety symptoms.
Young workers interviewed said the adjustment took weeks, but some reported stronger in-person connections, more emotional awareness and less dependence on the “dopamine” of texting and scrolling.