As a parent, what are you meant to do if your child flat out refuses to get a job? Of course, the first port of call would be to not give them any pocket money. Then what? Remove the Xbox from their bedroom? Slowly, but surely, remove all of their belongings? Threaten them with eviction if they don't get off their a** and find work?
It's a conundrum that many parents have to contend with, as, let's face it, when you're a teenager, the last thing you want to do is work. At that age, you are self-centred enough to believe that there is already enough going on in your life without having to go and make yourself even more miserable for eight hours of the day.
But, sadly, work is a part of life that we all have to contend with. I, for one, remember my first job. I worked in a nightclub cloakroom, which, as anyone who has done similar will tell you, is quite possibly the worst job in the world. I was 16, working 17:00pm - 05:00am on Friday and Saturday nights and I genuinely wanted to slap the majority of people that I served.
However, while I may have hated my job, at least I was working and making my own money. However, the same can't be said for one boy from Lincolnshire, UK.
For this kid, his dad got so fed up with him laying on the sofa and doing nothing, that he called the emergency services in order to make him get a job. However, rather than assist the dad in his request, the police have slammed the parent and revealed that he had made two calls to the life-or-death emergency helpline.
According to them, his child whined that he couldn't find a "suitable job" for his talents. Sam, a Lincolnshire Police control room staff member, said: "This is definitely not an appropriate use of an emergency line. Words of advice issued!"
She added: "No matter how much you may want your child to get a job, calling the police is not the answer."
The police force made sure to stress that 999 should only be used for genuine emergencies and that through using the helpline for non-urgent calls, you may be preventing someone who is a serious amount of distress.
Unsurprisingly, the story has gained traction online, with a number of people on social media commenting about the incident.
One person said: "From a very young age, I knew that 999 = emergency services. I can remember my dad teaching me how to make an emergency call when I was seven or eight and stressing that 999 was ONLY emergencies.
"I am 45 now and I still understand that message. Come on people."
Another commenter said: "I don’t understand how there’s so many of these types of people. Everyone I know is petrified of accidentally dialling 999 and does a panicked 'end call' if they do."
It's important to remember that the emergency services are there for, well... emergencies. If your kid is refusing to get a job, just cut off all electricity to their bedroom - that should do the trick.
