MINIMUM AGE STANDARDS FOR EMPLOYMENT

This reference guide provides general information about the federal child labor and North Carolina youth employment provisions applicable to non-agricultural occupations. Different federal standards apply to farm work, but the North Carolina youth employment provisions do not apply to farm work.

Both the U.S. and N.C. Departments of Labor are committed to helping young workers find positive and early employment experiences that can be so important to their development, but the work must be safe. Child labor provisions of the FLSA and the youth employment provisions of the WHA were enacted to ensure that the health, well-being or educational opportunities of young workers are not jeopardized. It is an unfortunate fact that children do get injured, even killed, in the workplace. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health estimates that more than 210,000 American children suffer occupational injuries every year. More than 70,000 of these injuries are serious enough to warrant emergency room treatment.

Employers may be subject to either the federal child labor or the North Carolina youth employment provisions or both. The federal provisions apply under the same coverage criteria as established for the other provisions of the FLSA. Refer to Fact Sheet 14 or federal regulations. The North Carolina youth employment provisions generally apply to all employers doing business in North Carolina regardless of their size or number of employees. However governmental, agricultural and domestic employers are totally exempt from the North Carolina youth employment provisions, including the requirement to obtain a North Carolina work permit for youths under 18.

Both federal and state laws govern the employment of young workers and when both are applicable, the law with the more stringent standard must be obeyed.

The child labor/youth employment provisions do not:

• apply where no FLSA or WHA employment relationship exists, such as bona fide volunteers in medical, educational, religious or nonprofit organizations where an employer-employee relationship does not exist;

• regulate such issues as discrimination, harassment, verbal or physical abuse, or morality, though other federal and state laws may.

MINIMUM AGE STANDARDS FOR EMPLOYMENT

The FLSA and the child labor regulations issued at 29 CFR, Part 570, and the WHA and the youth employment regulations establish both hours and occupational standards for youth. Children of any age are generally permitted to work for businesses entirely owned by their parents, except those under 16 may not be employed in mining or manufacturing, and no one under 18 may be employed in any occupation the Secretary of Labor has declared to be hazardous or the Commissioner of Labor has declared to be detrimental.

18 Once a youth reaches 18 years of age, he or she is no longer subject to the child labor/youth employment provisions. Youths under 18 years of age must obtain a youth employment certificate (work permit) when employed, even if they are employed by their parents. The certificate and the issuing instructions are obtained from the N.C. Department of Labor Web site http://www.nclabor.com/wh/youth_instructions.htm.

16 and17 Basic minimum age for employment. Sixteen- and 17-year-olds may be employed in any occupation other than those declared hazardous or detrimental. No youth under 18 years of age who is enrolled in school in grade 12 or lower may be employed between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. when there is school for the youth the next day. Sixteen- and 17-year-old youths may get the hour restriction waived upon written permission from the parent/guardian and from the youth's principal/designee.

14 and 15 Young persons 14 and 15 years of age may be employed outside school hours in a variety of non-manufacturing and non-hazardous/non-detrimental jobs for limited periods of time and under specified conditions.

Under 14 Children under 14 years of age may not be employed in non-agricultural occupations. Permissible employment for such children is limited to work that is exempt from the FLSA and WHA (such as actors or performers in motion pictures, theatrical, radio or television productions). Children may also perform work not covered by the FLSA or WHA such as completing minor chores around private homes or casual babysitting.

OCCUPATIONS BANNED FOR ALL MINORS UNDER THE AGE OF 18

The Hazardous Occupations Orders (HOs)

The FLSA and the WHA both establish an 18-year minimum age for those nonagricultural occupations that the Secretary of Labor finds and declares to be particularly hazardous for 16- and 17-year-old minors, or detrimental to their health or well-being. In addition, Child Labor Regulation No. 3 also bans 14- and 15-year-olds from performing any work proscribed by the HOs. There are currently 17 HOs that include a partial or total ban on the occupations or industries they cover. NOTE: The NCDOL has adopted the 17 federal HOs as a part of the WHA in addition to establishing its own detrimental occupations, which are discussed after this section.

DETRIMENTAL OCCUPATIONS

Detrimental Occupations

In addition to the 17 HOs, the WHA establishes nine detrimental occupations that the N.C. Commissioner of Labor has declared to be detrimental to the health and well-being of all youths under

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