What Employers Need to Consider When Hiring Minors
Before hiring a minor, confirm the worker’s age, the duties they may perform, the hours they may work, the wage rules that apply, and any state permit or certificate requirements. Put those limits into the job description and schedule before the first shift, then give the supervisor a clear list of prohibited tasks.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulates youth employment. It covers employment aspects like wages, work hours, and the type of work minors can do in covered jobs, but state law may provide greater protection. Therefore, employers need to consider federal laws and state laws regarding hiring minors to fulfill their obligations, ensure compliance, and avoid costly legal issues. As a general rule, always adhere to the stricter applicable protection when the laws conflict. The federal rules for agricultural employment are different, so this article focuses primarily on non-agricultural work and links to the separate farm-work guidance where needed.
What to Know About Hiring Minors
Hiring minors can give young people an opportunity to earn income and gain practical work experience while helping an employer develop an entry-level talent pipeline. Offering minors opportunities for early work experience can be mutually beneficial, but it requires more preparation than an ordinary hire. Use your employment law compliance process to check federal, state, and local requirements for the worker’s age, location, industry, duties, and school schedule.
Age Restrictions for Minors
For covered non-agricultural work, age 14 is generally the minimum age for limited work outside school hours. This does not mean an employer can hire anyone below age 18 for any job. Fourteen- and 15-year-olds may perform only work that federal rules permit, while 16- and 17-year-olds may perform most non-hazardous non-agricultural occupations. Federal youth employment restrictions generally end at age 18.
Some activities are treated differently. Delivering newspapers and performing in theatre, movie, television, or radio productions are exempt from specified FLSA youth employment provisions. Casual babysitting and minor household chores in a private home generally fall outside the FLSA employment relationship. A parent-owned business may employ the parent’s child in some work, but hazardous occupation restrictions still apply to 16- and 17-year-olds, and mining and manufacturing remain restricted for children under 16. The U.S. Department of Labor explains these distinctions in Fact Sheet #43.
Do not assume that a federal exception eliminates state requirements. Despite the federal minimum age limits, state laws may require an employment certificate, age certificate, school approval, employer registration, or proof of age for verification before employment. Review the Department of Labor’s state certificate table and the applicable state labor agency before the employee starts work. Agricultural employers should use the separate federal farm-work rules.
Compensating a Minor
Just like adult employees, minors are generally entitled to the applicable statutory minimum wage for every hour worked. The FLSA provides a limited exception: the federal youth minimum wage permits an FLSA-covered employer to pay an employee under age 20 at least $4.25 per hour during the first 90 consecutive calendar days after initial employment, but only while the employee remains under 20. An employer may not displace another worker to use this opportunity wage, and state laws often call for higher compensation.
Review the conditions in the Department of Labor’s youth minimum wage guidance before using the federal rate. Configure payroll controls so the rate changes when the 90-calendar-day period ends, the employee turns 20, or a higher applicable wage takes effect. Keep accurate records of hours actually worked.
Hazardous Occupations
Separate the rules for 14- and 15-year-olds from the hazardous occupation orders that protect all workers under 18. Fourteen- and 15-year-olds may work only in permitted nonmanufacturing and nonhazardous occupations. The federal rules prohibit them from most work involving transportation, construction, warehousing and storage, communications and public utilities, mining, manufacturing, processing, power-driven machinery, firefighting, and work areas where goods are manufactured or processed.
Workers under 18 also may not perform occupations covered by the federal hazardous occupation orders. Hazardous jobs include specified work involving explosives, driving motor vehicles or being an outside helper, coal mining, logging and sawmilling, work that can expose minors to radioactive substances, power-driven hoisting equipment, meat-processing machines, balers and compactors, roofing, trenching, wrecking, and certain saws and cutting machines. For ages 14 and 15, additional restrictions cover warehousing and storage, construction and repair, operating power-driven machines, manufacturing industries, mining, and working where manufacturing or processing takes place. Review the Department of Labor’s current off-limits jobs guidance for the complete task-specific rules.
Exceptions exist that may allow 16- and 17-year-olds to perform some otherwise restricted tasks as qualifying apprentices or student learners under specified hazardous occupation orders. Do not treat enrollment in a program as a general exception. Verify the program, binding agreements, supervision, and safety restrictions before assigning the work. Describe allowed and prohibited duties when writing job descriptions, and require supervisor approval before duties or equipment change.
Working Hours for Minors
Federal nonagricultural rules limit both the schedule and the time of day for 14- and 15-year-olds. They may work only outside school hours and no more than:
- 3 hours on a school day, including Friday;
- 18 hours in a school week;
- 8 hours on a nonschool day; or
- 40 hours in a nonschool week.
They may not work before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. The evening limit extends to 9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day. These limits come from Department of Labor Fact Sheet #43.
Federal nonagricultural law does not limit the number or timing of hours for 16- and 17-year-olds, but the hazardous occupation orders still apply. Many states limit their hours, night work, or school-week schedules. Check the Department of Labor’s state child labor comparison and confirm the current state rule before publishing a schedule.
Work Permits, Hiring Documents, and Screening
There is no single nationwide work-permit or parental-consent rule for every minor and every job. State requirements vary by age, school status, occupation, and location. Confirm who must issue and sign any employment or age certificate, what proof of age the employer must retain, and whether a parent or school must authorize the employment.
Contract enforceability and minor-specific authorization rules are matters of state law. Depending on the jurisdiction, binding agreements with a minor may be voidable, and a minor may have a right to disaffirm a contract before age 18 or within a reasonable time afterward. Have qualified counsel review the legal capacity of both parties and the appropriate authorization before issuing an agreement, rather than assuming parental authorization cures every issue.
Apply the ordinary federal screening rules as well. When conducting background checks through a third-party company, including criminal or credit background checks, federal guidance requires a standalone disclosure and written permission from the applicant or employee before obtaining the report. The EEOC background-check guidance also explains notice and discrimination requirements. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employer generally may not require medical checks before a conditional job offer; after an offer, an examination must be required consistently for all entering employees in the same job category. See the EEOC medical-examination guidance. Drug tests and minor-specific authorization rules may add jurisdiction-specific requirements, so take appropriate steps to avoid consent-related problems.
Employer Considerations When Hiring Minors
A repeatable pre-hire checklist turns the legal rules into operating controls. Complete and retain these steps before the first shift:
- Confirm the worker’s age. Record the employee’s date of birth and retain accepted proof when required.
- Check the jurisdiction. Identify the work location and compare federal, state, and local youth employment rules.
- Complete permits or certificates. Obtain any required state employment or age certificate, school approval, or employer registration.
- Screen every duty. Match the written job description to the permitted occupations for the worker’s age and remove prohibited tasks and equipment.
- Build a compliant schedule. Check school-day, school-week, night-work, and break limits before assigning shifts.
- Set the correct wage. Document the applicable minimum wage, any lawful youth wage, the start date, and the date or event that ends the lower rate.
- Review screening and agreements. Use compliant disclosure, permission, medical-exam, drug-testing, and contract procedures for the jurisdiction.
- Train the supervisor. Explain the allowed duties, prohibited equipment, schedule boundaries, escalation path, and recordkeeping responsibility.
Use the Department of Labor’s FLSA recordkeeping guidance as a baseline, then add state-required documents. A state-issued employment or age certificate can help establish age for youth employment purposes, but it does not replace a task, schedule, wage, or safety review.
For a consistent internal workflow, adapt the Bizmanualz Employee Hiring Procedure and related HR hiring resources to include the age-specific checks above. Recheck the file whenever the employee’s duties, equipment, location, or schedule changes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 14 the minimum age for every job?
No. Age 14 is the general minimum for covered nonagricultural employment, but exemptions and activities outside FLSA coverage exist, and agricultural work follows different federal rules. State law may be more protective.
How late can a 14- or 15-year-old work?
Under federal nonagricultural rules, they may not work before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. The evening limit extends to 9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day, and state law may impose tighter limits.
Can 16- and 17-year-olds work unlimited hours?
Federal nonagricultural law does not cap their hours, but it prohibits hazardous occupations for workers under 18. State law may restrict daily, weekly, school-night, or late-night hours.
Does every minor need a work permit?
No single federal permit rule covers every job. State rules determine whether an employment certificate, age certificate, school approval, employer registration, or proof-of-age record is required.
Can an employer pay a minor less than the federal minimum wage?
The federal youth minimum wage may apply to an employee under age 20 during the first 90 consecutive calendar days after initial employment, subject to anti-displacement protections and any more protective state or local wage law.
