When I was 12... I ran the kiosk at the local mini putt for $1 a day, plus a free lunch and all the mini putt I could putt!!! When I was 15, I ran a bait shop for $3.50 and hour and counted worms for the most part. At 16 I learned how to set blasting caps and worked a hand shovel on construction for $3.85 and hour.
As far as I'm concerned, I'm in no huge hurry to make my kids go to work. They are gonna get to work their whole lives... If they need extra cash.. I got lotsa jobs for them. There's plenty of time to go to work for dickhead bosses in the future, and Im sure they will have plenty of those "opportunities".
Id rather show them how to make thier own money and not be dependent on the whims of employers and unions.