16-Year-Old Threatens To Quit Her Job After Her Dad Says He’s ‘Entitled’ To Her Earnings
She's trying to be financially responsible, while he is financially abusing her.
DimaBerlin | Shutterstock It’s nice to see teenagers being financially responsible and saving up for things that matter. A 16-year-old was trying to do this, but her dad kept getting in her way. He insisted she contributed to household expenses and claimed that he was “entitled” to her money as her father.
Kids contributing to household expenses isn't unheard of, but generally it's driven out of desperation or for adult children who are still living at home. In this instance, the teen turned to Reddit seeking advice because her dad wasn't asking for help with bills; he was trying to take her entire paycheck.
The teen said her dad was basically taking all of the money she earned at her job.
The 16-year-old began her post by explaining that her parents are divorced, and she’s only lived with her dad for a year. Although the situation isn’t good, it sounds like moving in with her mom would be even worse.
“Last year in November, I began working at a restaurant as a hostess to save up for a car,” she shared. “I take the bus to and from school, as well as to work, and a car would save me a lot of time. I make minimum wage, and I pull in a little over $1,000 a month after taxes. I put about 60 [to] 70% of that into savings and spend the rest on various things like going out with friends or Funko Pops.”
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Everything seemed to be going fine until her dad got involved. “In February of this year, my dad told me since I was making so much money I needed to start contributing to the household,” she explained. “At first this was fine. He asked that I pay for my phone bill and utilities … Both things are about $200.”
She was still able to save a decent amount of money, around $400 to $500 a month, until he got greedier. She continued, “In July, he decided I needed to pay a portion of the rent. I tried to argue with him on that, but he threatened to close my account (which he can do because he opened it for me).”
At this point, the girl had very limited funds left to save for a car, but her father decided he still deserved more.
As she said, “It gets worse.” She had some cash saved up in a jar in her room in case she ever went somewhere she couldn’t pay with a card. She found it empty one day. “When I asked my dad he said that since I’m his daughter he’s entitled to the money I make,” she recounted.
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Her dad also told her that he wanted another $100 each month since, in his words, “I shouldn’t have that much money just for me.” That leaves her with just $200 a month total. Naturally, she decided she was tired of working just to lose all of her money.
“Last night I told my dad I was going to give my two weeks notice,” she revealed. “I work hard and I’m exhausted. It isn’t worth the few hundred dollars I get. He was absolutely furious and said that I owe it to him to contribute to the household.”
The teen was advised to speak to a trusted adult about her dad's behavior.
This girl might have thought she had no other option but to put up with her dad's unreasonable demands, but commenters assured her that was not the case. One user pointed out that her parents are legally required to provide for her until she turns 18. Some suggested she go to a trusted adult, like a school counselor, while others recommended she call CPS herself.
According to USAHello, an organization that teaches immigrants about living in the United States, parents are indeed “legally responsible for providing for their children until they become adults.” This includes material necessities like food, shelter, and clothing, as well as healthcare and education. Parents are, perhaps most importantly, responsible for financially providing for their children until they are adults.
This dad seems to have gotten things mixed up and thinks his daughter should be providing for him for some reason. As one commenter said, this is financial abuse, and this girl needs to get help.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
