Jobs children can be employed to work in at specific ages
When establishing whether a child at a certain age is to be employed in any form of job it is imperative first to distinguish is what is meant by the term child.
It is not illegal for children below the age of 14, who are at least 13-years-old to be employed in certain roles. This enables children of that age to earn small amount as pocket money by doing such jobs as delivering newspapers.
Accordingly, children who have reached the age of 13 can be employed in the following:
Agricultural of horticultural work
Delivery of newspapers, magazine and leaflets
Shop work – this can include shelf stacking
Work in hair salons
Certain forms of office work – this however cannot include an office attached to a factory
Washing cars by hand in a private residential setting
Work in a café or a restaurant – this however cannot include work in a commercial kitchen
Work in riding stables
Domestic work in hotels or other forms of establishment offering accommodation
Light work is taken to mean work which on account of the inherent nature of the tasks which it involves at the particular conditions under which the task is performed is not likely to be harmful to the health, safety or development of children and is not such as harmful to their attendance at school or their participation in work experience in accordance with section 560 of the Education Act, or their capacity to benefit from instruction received.
There are certain forms of employment whereby, children of any age are prohibited to work. They are as follows:
In a cinema – except in connection with a performance given entirely by children
In a discotheque, dance hall or night-club – except in connection with a performance given entirely by children
To sell or deliver alcohol – except where the alcohol is in sealed containers
To deliver milk
To deliver fuel oils
To work in a commercial kitchen
To collect or sort refuse
To work in any job which is more than three metres above ground level, or in the case of work which happens indoors, work which is more than three metres above floor
To work in any employment which involves exposure to physical, biological or chemical agents
To work collecting money or to sell canvas door to door – except under the supervision of an adult
To work in employment which involves exposure to adult material or in situations which are for this reason otherwise unsuitable to children
To work in telephone sales
To work in any slaughterhouse or in part of any butcher’s shop connected with the killing of livestock, butchery or the preparation of carcasses or meat for sale
To work as an attendant or assistant in a fairground or amusement arcade or in any other premises used for the purpose of public amusement by means of automatic machines, games of chance or skill or similar devices
To work in the personal care of residents of any residential care home or nursing home
To be employed in street trading – this applies subject to any local education authority bye-laws which can allow children over the age of 14 to be employed in street trading by their parents.
Other Important Information
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Nicola is a dual qualified journalist and non-practising solicitor. She is a legal journalist, editor and author with more than 20 years' experience writing about the law.
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