When your teen goes to work

For most parents there is a limit on how much you can spend on your children once they become teenagers and there social lives become more active. So teens enter the work force. In fact, the US Department of Labor estimates that about 44 percent of all 16 and 17-year-olds work at some point during a year, either during the school year or during the summer.

However, how much and when your child can work is regulated by the federal government and administered by the U.S. Department of Labor. Individual states may have additional restrictions.

The Rules

A child's age determines how many hours he or she can work and in what type of jobs. For example, in Connecticut 14 and 15 year-olds can work no more than three hours on a school day and no more than 8 hours on a non-school day. Additionally, although 14 and 15 year-olds may work in retail establishments they can only do so during non-school weeks and can work in retail food stores on Saturdays only during the school year. For more on permitted occupations for 14 and 15 year-olds, click here.

Fewer restrictions are placed on 16 and 17 year-olds, but they too are limited to certain hours depending on the type of industry. For Connecticut's time and hour restrictions by industry, click here.

Working Papers

Connecticut labor laws require all working teens to have working papers. Very simply these are certification to the employer that the teen is the appropriate age for the job being done. Working papers must be obtained before the teen begins work. To get working papers a teen must:

• Be at least 16 years-old (or 15 if working in a retail establishment during vacation weeks)
• Have an employer's written promise of employment
• Have proof of age (birth certificate, passport etc.)
• Have a Social Security Number

Working papers are obtained through the local high school or the Superintendent of Schools. For more on working papers in Connecticut, click here.

More Information
Additional information on youth employment can be found on the U.S. Department of Labor's "Youth Rules" website and on the Connecticut Labor Department's "Employment Rules."

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