Child Labor Laws

Age 14-15 | Under 18 | Driving Regulations

All minors, regardless of age, may be employed:

By their parents or guardians. (except in manufacturing, mining & hazardous occupations)
In agriculture or farming with written consent of parents.
In the delivery or collection of newspapers, periodicals or circulars.
As an actor, model or performer.
As a legislative aide.
In casual domestic work in a person’s home.
As an official or referee for a non-profit athletic organization

Minors under age 14 may not be employed in jobs other than those listed above.

14 & 15 year olds may not be employed:

During school hours
Before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. during the school year, or after 9 p.m. during the summer
More than 3 hours per day on a school day
More than 18 hours per week during school weeks
More than 8 hours per day during non-school weeks
More than 40 hours per week during non-school weeks

14&15 year olds may be employed:
(cooking is permitted only at snack bars, soda fountains, lunch counters & cafeteria counters).

Sales work in retail stores
Dispensing gas & oil & performing courtesy service in gas stations
Most clean up work, including operating vacuums & floor waxers (No power driven mowers).

Any youth under the age of 18 may not be employed in the following occupations:

Manufacturing & storing explosives
Riding outside a motor vehicle to assist in transporting or delivering goods
Logging and saw milling
Power-driven woodworking machines
Exposure to radioactive substances
Power-driven hoisting apparatus, such as forklifts & cranes
Power-driven metal-forming, punching & shearing machines
Any mining position
Slaughtering, meat-packing, processing or rendering
Power-driven bakery machines
Power-driven paper-products machines
Manufacturing of brick, tile & other similar products
Power-driven circular saws, band saws & guillotine shears
Wrecking, demolition & shipbreaking operations
Roofing operations
Excavation operations

Driving Regulations for Teen Employees:

16 year olds and younger may not drive on public roads while working.
17 year olds may drive cars and light duty trucks for running errands or making deliveries during daylight hours.
17 year olds may drive as much as one-third of their work day or 20% of their workweek.
Teen drivers must hold a state license valid for the type of driving being performed, have successfully completed a state approved driver education program, and have no record of any moving violation at the time of hire.
In addition, the driving performed by the 17-year-old employee may not involve:
- Towing vehicles;
- Route deliveries or route sales;
- The transportation for hire of property, goods, or passengers;
- Urgent, time-sensitive deliveries;
- Transporting more than three passengers, including employees of the employer;
- Driving beyond a 30 mile radius from youth’s place of employment;
- More than two trips away from the primary place of employment in any single day for the purpose of delivering the employer’s goods to a customer;
- More than two trips away from the primary place of employment in an single day for the purpose of transporting passengers, other than employees of the employer.

For more information about child labor laws, visit the Department of Labor's Elaws Advisor.

The Department of Labor is providing this information as a public service. The regulations and related materials are maintained on this system to enhance public access to information on Department of Labor programs. This is a service that is continually under development. The user should be aware that, while we try to keep the information timely and accurate, there will often be a delay between official publication of the materials and their appearance in or modification of this system. Further, the conclusions reached by this system rely on the accuracy of the data provided by the user. Therefore, we make no express or implied guarantees. The Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations remain the official sources for regulatory information published by the Department of Labor. We will make every effort to correct errors brought to our attention.