Editorial · May 9, 2024
Child Labor Rules: Summer Jobs for Teen Workers
Child labor rules set the youngest age, the longest hours and the riskiest jobs for teen workers, and they apply to your summer hiring if the Fair Labor Standards Act covers your business. The U.S. Department of Labor enforces them. Here is a plain guide to the federal rules, written for owners who plan to hire young people this summer.
Federal law is the floor, not the ceiling. Many states add their own limits, and when both apply, the stricter one wins. Check your state labor office before you post a job.
The age limits come first
The age of the worker decides almost everything. Start there, and the rest of the rules fall into place.
- Under 14: Children may not work in most non-farm jobs covered by the law. A few kinds of work are exempt, such as delivering newspapers and acting. Minor chores at a private home and casual baby-sitting are also outside the law.
- 14 and 15: Teens may work in many office, retail and food service jobs, but only for limited hours and under set conditions.
- 16 and 17: Teens may work unlimited hours in any job that is not on the government's hazardous list.
- 18 and older: The federal youth rules no longer apply.
There is one family exception. Children of any age can generally work for a business that their parents own outright. Even then, anyone under 16 may not work in mining or manufacturing, and no one under 18 may do hazardous work.
Hours limits for 14 and 15 year olds
Teens aged 14 and 15 face the tightest hour rules. Federal regulation sets these limits:
- Work only outside school hours.
- No more than 3 hours on a school day, and that includes Fridays.
- No more than 8 hours on a day with no school.
- No more than 18 hours in a week when school is in session.
- No more than 40 hours in a week when school is not in session.
- Work only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. From June 1 through Labor Day, the evening limit moves to 9 p.m.
Mind the dates. Before June 1, the 7 p.m. cutoff still holds.
Teens who are 16 or 17 have no federal hour limits. Some states still set them, so look up your state.
Jobs that younger teens can do
The rule for 14 and 15 year olds is simple: if a job is not on the permitted list, they cannot do it. The permitted list leans toward customer-facing and office work. The Labor Department names these examples:
- Bagging groceries, stocking shelves and working a cash register.
- Most office work.
- Creative work such as teaching, playing music, art and performing.
- Limited kitchen work, such as preparing food and drinks.
- Cooking on electric or gas grills that do not use an open flame, and using deep fryers that lower and raise the baskets automatically.
- Cleaning cooking equipment and surfaces, and moving grease, if the temperature stays at or below 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
Pools are a special case. A 15-year-old can work as a lifeguard at a traditional pool or water park after training and certification from the American Red Cross or a similar group. A 14-year-old cannot. At lakes, rivers and ocean beaches, lifeguards must be at least 16.
Jobs that are off limits
Two lists of banned work apply to your teen hires. The first covers 14 and 15 year olds. They may not work in most jobs in transportation, construction, warehousing, communications or public utilities. They may not work in processing or mining, or in any room where goods are made or processed. Freezers and meat coolers are off limits. They may not run power-driven machinery other than office machines. Baking, door-to-door sales, sign waving and youth peddling are also banned. So is any work from ladders or scaffolds.
The second list is the set of 17 Hazardous Occupations Orders. They ban workers under 18 from certain jobs, and they bind 14 and 15 year olds too. A few that surprise summer employers:
- Driving and riding as a helper on motor vehicles. There is a narrow exception for 17-year-olds under strict limits.
- Forklifts, scissor lifts and similar power-driven hoists. Teens may not operate or ride them.
- Meat slicers. The ban covers restaurants and delis, and it covers cleaning the machine parts. It also covers slicing cheese and vegetables.
- Power-driven bakery machines, such as dough mixers and rollers. Some small countertop mixers are allowed for 16 and 17 year olds under set conditions.
- Roofing. The ban covers all work on or about a roof.
- Trenching and excavation. This includes working in a trench deeper than four feet.
A checklist before the first shift
Run through these steps for every young hire:
- Confirm the worker's age with a document you can keep on file.
- Look up your state's rules. Some states require work permits for minors, and the federal rules do not.
- Match the job to the age. Compare each task, not just the job title, against the permitted and banned lists above.
- Write the schedule within the hour limits, using the June 1 to Labor Day change for the evening cutoff.
- Keep machines off the task list. Slicers, mixers and lifts are the usual trouble spots.
Breaking the rules can be costly. The Labor Department's investigators enforce the youth provisions, and an employer that violates them may face civil money penalties. The fine is higher when the violation contributed to a young worker's injury or death. A firm that follows the checklist avoids most of that risk.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, Fact Sheet #43: Child Labor Provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for Nonagricultural Occupations, revised December 2016.