Different rules apply during the school year
Summer jobs may have been put on the shelf when students returned to school this fall, but employers who hire minors now should be aware of slightly different laws for employment during the school year.
During normal school sessions, employers must be mindful of the hours their young employees work. In South Carolina, minors ages 14 and 15 can work up to three hours a day, 18 hours a week. Those work hours must fall within the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. These rules are slightly more restrictive than federal rules, which allow for longer hours during weekends and holiday breaks.
However, the jobs might not pay very well in the beginning. Federal law allows employers to pay employees under 20 years of age as little as $4.25 per hour for the first 90 days. The state does not address child labor wages.
Some 53,000 workers ages 16 to 19 make up about 32 percent of the labor force, and about 22 percent of those employed, according to 2012 numbers from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the most recent available. Numbers for younger workers were not available, but some children do begin working before they reach 16.
In South Carolina, minors under age 14 are prohibited from employment, with a few exceptions. Students as young as age 12 can work at agricultural establishments where their parents are employed. And there’s no business like show business for kids younger than 14, who can be employed as performers in theatrical, television, radio or film productions.
Newspaper delivery, an old standby, can start at any age.
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Learn more about rules specific to South Carolina:
