My dad signed me up for work experience when I was fifteen without telling me in the summer holidays. I was pretty annoyed because I didn't want to work for a lawyer. It didn't work out for my dad because I didn't become a lawyer, but I did spend a week filing and falling asleep in court.
And it seems that parents are still doing this - on social media, too.
When Donna Cooper's sixteen-year-old son was told he could only come to school on Monday and Tuesday because of his behaviour, she was livid.
And she wasn't keen on having him lounge around the house while she was out working.
If education wasn't working out for him, he'd have to go to work. So she advertised his services on Facebook and said he would for free.
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The owner of a café commented and offered him work immediately. Well to be fair, the prospect of free labour is probably pretty attractive. Although I'm sure it's illegal!
"Some kids expect jobs to fall on their laps," Donna told Hull Daily Mail. "Nick complained about the café work at first but he went on to do a brilliant job. He now has a great reference to be able to find other work."
To be fair, I think he shouldn't be working for free. But hey ho.
"I wanted to teach him that you need to put yourself out there," Donna continued. "I got the number of the apprenticeship company for him but I left him to it after that. He managed to organise an interview for himself while we were at work, and now he has a trial doing a job he has always wanted to do."
I wanted him to gain an education in life and now thanks to the post he has been offered a two-week trial for a joinery apprenticeship in Leven."
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Score - if that's what he wanted to do anyway good for him.
Some of the FB comments were pretty positive about Nick. Even if he's on a "restricted timetable" with the school, he's not all bad.
What do you have to do to get put on a restricted timetable? I'm pretty curious.
"This young lad picked me up and took me home," wrote one woman. "I had had a horrific fall and if it hadn't been for Nick I probably would have died so thank you. A lovely young man."
Wow, that's the best reference ever. Nick is a hero.
Others thought it was a pretty good idea to farm out your kids.
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"Great idea! Teaching your son that if he isn't going to be at school then he has to use his time productively then he might just decide that school isn't so bad after all. Hats off to you."
Another person said: "Brilliant I'm so pleased for the lad, no doubt he will be a credit to his mum and a star in his own right."
Featured Image Credit: Facebook