Introduction
Child labor rules at both the state and federal levels are intended to safeguard kids from working too long hours, too early, or undertaking duties that could result in diseases or accidents. But one of the most frequently asked questions is: how many hours can a minor work in California? The answer depends on several factors, including the age of the minor, whether the school is in session and the type of job.
The child labor regulations might or might not be applicable to students participating in work-based educational activities, depending on the type of learning activity. Every job position is subject to child labor regulations.
The beginnings of child labor laws are a patchwork of past events and legislative factors, including narrower financial goals that have emerged at different points in U.S. history, like preventing children from competing for jobs in specific industries, as well as more fundamental social objectives like safeguarding children from financial slavery and requiring education for their own and society’s benefit. These laws directly influence how many hours a minor can work, and why strict restrictions are necessary for certain age groups and industries.
Because laws regarding child labor are designed to make sure that hiring someone under the age of eighteen is appropriate for their age, health, schooling, and safety, the regulations governing hiring minors can be intricate and contain numerous specific exceptions for certain sectors or situations. Additionally, in order to apply the strictest criterion that favors the underage employee, companies have to contrast state and federal legislation.
Background
A system of occupational limits and prohibitions against child work has been in place in California since 1915. The California government passed child labor legislation with the intention of providing young people with a safe, healthy atmosphere where they can obtain job experience and earn money without compromising their formal education or welfare. To bring state and federal laws pertaining to the hiring of minors more closely together, California passed the Omnibus Child Labor Reform Act in 1995.
Business Case
In California, employers must consider both state and federal regulations to determine how many hours can a minor work legally without violating labor codes. Apart from the moral and health benefits of adhering to California’s child labor regulations, organizations additionally have an economic motivation. Employers who violate child labor laws in California are subject to severe criminal and civil penalties.
California’s laws prohibiting child labor are very stringent, and the consequences are harsh. Consequences for noncompliance can range from 500 dollars to 10 thousand dollars per infraction (based on the kind of offense) and criminal culpability, which can result in jail imprisonment and fines of as much as $10,000 for greater infractions. Essentially, there are certain misdemeanor penalties associated with practically all child labor regulations and laws requiring compulsory education.
The Role of HR
It’s also critical for HR professionals to understand how many hours can a minor work, especially since violating these rules may result in significant penalties. Having a solid grasp of the rules that pertain to their company is the first step in human resource executives’ compliance with California’s child labor regulations. Every California child labor rule must be followed, and the HR department is in charge of doing so with the help of legal counsel. HR specialists contribute significantly to the safety and well-being of their younger workers in the process.
HR professionals also need to spend more time teaching minors about their rights at work and ensuring they receive the remuneration they are entitled to, as jobs are frequently their first paid encounter.
As of 1st Jan 2021, California frontline supervisors and human resources professionals employed by companies with five or more employees who hire young people are required to report possible abuse of children. Read about Assembly Bill Number 1963 for details.
Meaning of Minor
A “minor” is defined generally in California Labor Code 1286 as any individual under the age limit of six and anyone under eighteen years who must attend school in accordance with the Education Code. California’s mandatory education statutes and attendance standards still apply to school dropouts, making them liable for all state employment regulations. Nonresident & noncitizen minors who labor in California are likewise subject to the law.
Any individual below the age of eighteen is considered a minor under California law, which defines the term more broadly in its wage regulations.
Child labor laws in California apply to nearly all adolescents below the age of 18. The only people who are completely exempt from California’s work hour limitations are high school grads and those having equivalency degrees who are younger than 18. They’re not, however, exempt from wage orders.
Federal law can nevertheless place limitations on hiring recent high school graduates who are younger than 18. For instance, federal law may forbid hiring such individuals in specific professions in the absence of suitable student-learner or apprenticeship programs.
Employers in California who have contractual obligations to hire kids living in the jurisdiction to perform work on-site outside of the state are also required to abide by all California laws.
When the employer is also an actual or legal parent or legal guardian of a minor employee engaged in domestic work, horticulture, viticulture, or agriculture on or in relation to property that the guardian or parent owns, operates, or manages, there is a carefully applicable exception to protection.
Due to their special status, these parents or legal employers are not subject to hazardous professional bans, work permit specifications, or most work hour limitations.
Even if they are not yet of school age, minors cannot work in these exempted activities while their parents or guardians are present. Before taking any further action in this regard, legal advice should be sought.
Employers who are parents or guardians are also excluded from federal and state minimum wage & overtime compensation laws when they engage their children.
However, even if they aren’t the employer, guardians or parents who allow a minor to work illegally are also at risk of special liability under Labor Code 1391(c).
Work Permits
The occupational limitations in California are so strict that adolescents are typically required to obtain a permit from educational institutions before they can work.
In California, a work permit provides a legal document that enables an individual under the age of eighteen to work. Authorization to work or hire is typically denied if the workplace is found to be unsuitable for the kid if the child’s education is hindered, or if the working conditions are harmful to the kid’s health.
Every juvenile under the age of eighteen, with very few exceptions, needs a work permit, which includes the following:
- Participants in a legitimate apprenticeship program.
- Dropouts
- Emancipated minors
- Children whose parents work in approved jobs, such as manufacturing, commerce, or comparable commercial endeavors, with the exception of domestic work or farming.
- Minors who are enrolled in a full-time, private school. The private school’s principal or another responsible party must provide written confirmation.
- California Education Law 48224 permits private tutoring of minors. It is necessary to get written confirmation from the minor’s county department of education or the nearest educational district.
- Minors enrolled in the local public educational system who are engaged in independent study. The minor’s home county department of education, the local school district, or the student’s school must provide written confirmation. One of the subsequent documents attesting to the minor’s acceptable or better attendance, academic record, and health is needed if classes aren’t in session: A letter of authorization from the head teacher or another individual responsible for the operation of the minor’s educational institution, a letter from a representative of the local district of schools in which the minor resides, a letter from a representative of the county’s board of education, or the minor’s latest report card may be used.
- Minors traveling to work from a different state or nation, if qualified.
- Children participating in WEE (Work Experience Education) programs who are not less than 16 years old.
Attending a charter school as a minor also requires obtaining formal confirmation from the school or the organization that issued the charter. Children who are homeschooled—that is, educated outside of a public school classroom—need to get official confirmation from their county department of education or the local school district. A physical examination may also be necessary to confirm that the juvenile is physically capable of carrying out the necessary tasks, according to the DLSE (Division of Labor Standards Enforcement).
Work permits need to be renewed when a student starts a new academic year or when they land a new employment. Furthermore, permissions are necessary all year long, not just during the academic year.
In order to prevent possible infractions of California’s child labor regulations, businesses should never allow a minor worker to start working until after the minor’s request has been formally accepted and a permit has been provided to them.
Exceptions
The following are a few specific exclusions from the work permit rules that apply to minor workers:
- Students who have completed high school or minors who have received a proficiency certificate.
- Children who work for their parents or guardians in domestic work, viticulture, horticulture, or agriculture on or near property that they own, manage, or control.
- Children who work on random tasks in private houses, like raking leaves, mowing lawns, and babysitting. Since they frequently work for themselves, minors who sell and distribute magazines or newspapers are exempt from permits. Permits are not needed for minors, regardless of whether they work for themselves, are not less than 14 years old, and are employed to distribute newspapers to customers.
- Children who take part in any equestrian riding competition, show, or event, regardless of whether they are compensated for their services or win cash.
- Children who work for local and state entities that are exempt from the child labor laws of the Labor Code. Nonetheless, the federal FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) applies to local and state organizations, and they must comply with all of its regulations.
Days/Hours of Work: How many hours can a minor work?
One of the most frequently asked questions is: How many hours can a minor work in California? The answer depends on the age of the minor and whether school is in session.
There are rigorous limitations on how many hours people below the age of eighteen can work due to a variety of federal & California state laws. In this sense, the child labor restrictions in California are very stringent.
The goal of California’s child employment regulations is to make sure that hiring someone under the age of eighteen is in line with the minor’s age, education, and individual safety. As a result, minors are typically subject to more limitations on the maximum number of hours they can work during school & non-school hours.
Generally speaking, children between the ages of fourteen and fifteen are allowed to work seven hours on a non-school day and three hours after school, for a total of eighteen hours per week. WEE pupils may work for a maximum of 23 hours a week during the school day.
16 and 17-year-olds are permitted to work for a maximum of 48 hours a week, 4 hours on school days, and 8 hours on non-school days or the days before non-school days. During a school day, WEE students & personal attendants are permitted to work extra hours, but not more than four.
Children between the ages of twelve and thirteen are not allowed to work before, during, or after school on any given school day; they are only permitted to work on weekends and during school vacations and holidays.
During non-school hours, all minors are allowed to work for no more than eight hours a day.
Permissible & Prohibited Occupations
Certain jobs are completely off-limits to children, even during approved hours and with necessary work licenses. All professions listed in federal regulations as dangerous for children or harmful to their well-being or health are specifically prohibited in California.
People who are not less than eighteen years old can work in any job, with very few exceptions, like selling and serving alcohol or transporting dangerous goods. Nevertheless, depending on the job and the young person’s age, many jobs that have been deemed dangerous (apart from those covered by the guardian or parent’s employer exception) or harmful to well-being or health are off-limits to minors from employment.
For every age group, there are lengthy lists of restricted vocations that cover a wide range of specialized jobs. In the following professions, for instance, minors below the age of sixteen may not be hired or allowed to work:
- Any job that has been deemed harmful to a minor’s well-being or health or especially dangerous for them to work in between the ages of sixteen and eighteen
- Any profession that has been deemed especially dangerous for children under the age of sixteen to work in (as determined by federal legislation concerning the use of certain agricultural machinery).
- Work done in or close to engine or boiler rooms.
- Any task that calls for the use of scaffolds, ladders, or their alternatives.
- Baking
- Work in meat coolers and freezers, and assist with all aspects of meat preparation.
- All jobs in warehouses, with the exception of secretarial and office duties.
- Jobs in processing, mining, or manufacturing.
- Operating a vehicle that transports people or being a helper or passenger aboard a tractor.
The legislation lists a few professions that might be suitable for children under a specific age. One typical example is the fact that many food service or retail jobs may be held by 14- & 15-year-olds.
The aforementioned instances represent a limited selection of the extensive number of professions and sectors in which minors are either legally allowed to work or barred from working in California. Therefore, any business that is thinking about hiring a minor must make sure the minor won’t be operating in a forbidden occupation by looking at the lists of designated jobs for the minor’s age.
It is outside the purview of this article to provide an exhaustive list of professions and industries. Employers can consult the California Child Labor Laws for a detailed list of professions that are acceptable, limited, and prohibited for kids below the age of eighteen.
Minors Working in the Entertainment Sector
Employers in the entertainment industry must ask: how many hours can a minor work on set without breaching labor rules? There are distinct regulations and work-hour limitations for minors in the entertainment sector.
It is prohibited for minors working in the entertainment sector to put in over eight hours of work per day or more than forty-eight hours per week. They are only allowed to work from five in the morning to 10 pm (or up to 12:30 am on days before a non-school day). A “school day” is a day when a minor must spend 240 minutes or longer in school.
Companies in the entertainment sector who hire children under a blanket or individual permit must have a DLSE-issued application to employ minors.
In order to receive an entertainment license, employers need to provide documentation of their workers’ compensation policy. Although the permit is thereafter granted for an indeterminate period of time, the DLSE regulation mandates that a fresh application be submitted in the event that workers’ compensation cover is interrupted.
Work permits and employment permits
Employers have to have permission issued by the DLSE to hire minors between the ages of 15 days and 18 who work in the entertainment business (as specified above). Additionally, these permissions are necessary for minors who work as advertising or picture models or who make phonographic recordings. Even if the entertainment is not for profit, these permissions are still necessary.
There are two kinds of entertainment job permits issued by the DLSE: blanket permits and individual permits. A six-month single permit is granted to the minor indicated in the application, and it must be reissued in the same way and under the same terms as the first one. Blanket permits are granted to groups of children employed for specific projects or special events that endure for a short time.
Employers are granted these permits after proving they are covered by workers’ compensation insurance and that a guardian or parent will be present with every group of at least twenty youngsters. For every minor, the DLSE mandates that the application be accompanied by parental approval and school verification paperwork. A compilation of the names of the juveniles that the employer supplied is included, but the permit does not specifically name any of them. When the unique event for which these licenses were initially issued comes to an end, they expire.
Using infants for work
California approved Assembly Bill 2396 in 2013, amending the laws governing the employment of newborns for less than one month on film sets or locations. The measure makes it clear that any temporary permit allowing the infant to work will only be granted following the fulfillment of Labor Code 1308.8’s particular requirements.
For instance, the pediatrician must attest in writing that the child is no less than 15 days old, that the child was born at full term, that the child weighs a typical number, and that the child is physically ready to handle the demands of filmmaking.
Exceptions in the entertainment sector
There are a number of other concurrent criteria that firms in the entertainment sector must adhere to in conjunction with the employment permit requirements.
The following locations allow minors of every age to appear without a permit:
- In any place of worship, public or private school, or public amusement center.
- There is no admission cost for any school entertainment, charity entertainment, or kid-friendly events.
- The minor may only participate in one appearance that lasts not longer than an hour in any television or radio broadcasting exhibition when they are not directly or indirectly compensated, and there is no admission price.
- When a minor’s guardian or parent is present at a single event during the course of the year, lasting 4 hours or less, on a day when presence at school is not necessary, or the day before such a day, they do not receive any payment, either directly or indirectly.
- Minors who have completed high school or its equivalent.
Minors Working in Door-to-Door Marketing/Sales
According to California law, anyone who hires, transports, or watches over a juvenile under the age of sixteen in door-to-door marketing more than ten miles from the kid’s home must register. All the federal and state regulations that govern the employment of children, the giving of wages, and the regulations, conditions, and locations of employment that impact the safety and health of minors must be complied with by registrants.
Postings
A variety of notices, some industry-specific, must be posted by employers.
Apart from the posting specifications for all employers, any farm owner, tenant, or operator who employs parents with minor children under their instantaneous custody or care must prominently post a notice that informs workers that minor kids are not permitted to work until work permits have been obtained. Both Spanish and English versions of the notices have to be printed. Employers are required to provide their own notices as there isn’t a standard poster available.
Maintaining records
In California, maintaining records is more stringent when hiring adolescents. The California DLSE states that companies are required to maintain a record of all permits. Records must always be available for review by DLSE inspectors and school administrators.
Not presenting permits is a $500 punishment for the first time and is considered sufficient proof of hiring children illegally. A record of the names, birth dates (ages), and full addresses of all juveniles employed, as well as time & payroll records mandated by the relevant IWC (Industrial Welfare Commission) Wage Order, must be maintained for 3 years by the employers.
A copy of the contract signed between the minor and their employer must be retained by employers who hire student learners.
Penalties
California has two different kinds of legal penalties for breaking its child labor regulations.
The more serious class A infractions typically involve minors working in dangerous jobs. Penalties for Class A offenses are $5,000 at the very least and $10,000 at the most.
Class B infractions include those that violate the Labor Code’s provisions pertaining to work permits and the hiring of minors in the entertainment sector, as well as any other infractions that the Industrial Relations Director deems to be directly or immediately related to the security, safety, or well-being of minor employees. Class B offenses incur civil fines of up to $1000 per violation, with a minimum penalty of $500.
Furthermore, any employer could face legal penalties for:
- Nonpayment of the relevant minimum wage.
- Failing to maintain insurance for workers’ compensation.
- Not submitting a written statement of deduction.
Criminal infractions of child labor regulations are misdemeanors that carry fines of as much as $10,000, up to 6 months in the county jail, or both. Essentially, nearly every regulation pertaining to child work and mandatory education has some sort of misdemeanor penalty.
Penalties for child labor liability
Anybody who hires or allows minors to engage in a forbidden occupation is subject to liability under the laws governing such occupations. Thus, regardless of how voluntarily the youngster performs the hazardous task, anyone who allows them to do so—even if they are not the employer—is subject to Class A penalties.
Even children who consider themselves self-employed are not allowed to partake in these illegal activities. Class A penalties would be imposed on a client who allows such an underage person to participate in the banned conduct. Underage work in any one of the federally controlled occupations that California has accepted is likewise subject to this kind of liability.
Real estate owners who intentionally profit from child labor crimes face all relevant legal penalties, regardless of whether they are the minor’s employer.
Any guardians or parents who allow their children to work illegally in the entertainment industry are subject to criminal and civil penalties. This includes employers, managers, agents, and others.
The Labor Commissioner may order garment makers to deposit a surety bond if they commit a 2nd violation concerning child labor, maximum hours, or minimum wage of labor during a 2-year period, or any combination of offenses. The Labor Commissioner has the authority to take any fully or partially assembled clothing and suspend a garment the manufacturer’s license for up to a year after a third or succeeding infraction during a two-year period.