At what age can children work: what does the law say and what are the conditions for official employment?

Home / Labor Law

Back

Published: November 27, 2019

Reading time: 6 min

1010

More and more children in adolescence, and often even earlier, begin to think about their own income. Surely your child will too. A modern child needs money for entertainment, new mobile devices, beautiful clothes. Many people think that under the age of 16 a person, in principle, cannot earn money officially, since this is prohibited by law. However, this opinion is wrong.

Let's listen to what the law says
Where and at what age are children hired from 16 years to adulthood?
From 14 years old
Up to 14 years old

Mandatory conditions for employment

Jobs that you can't take children to

How to pay your child's salary

When can I work?

The age at which children can officially work is specified in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Employment contracts can only be concluded with persons who have reached the age of 16 years. But there are also a number of cases when there may be relaxations. For example, children aged 15 who are in school can work for light work that will not affect their health.

Children aged 14 who have already completed general education can also officially get a job. But at the same time, one of the parents or guardian of the minor must give his consent to the conclusion of the agreement. Naturally, the work should be easy and not harmful to the child’s health. Also, a 14-year-old teenager who continues to study at school can officially get a job to do the same light work without harm to health. But here such a point as working in your free time from receiving education must also be observed.

Children under the age of 14 can work in cinematography organizations, theaters, theater organizations and those engaged in concert activities. But in this case, there must be permission from the parent or guardian, as well as the guardianship authority. In this case, we are talking about light work, such as creating or exhibiting various works. Again, care must be taken to ensure that there is no damage to the child’s health and moral development. In this case, the employment contract on the part of the employee will be signed by parents or guardians.

The law does not provide for such a provision as a probationary period for minor workers.

Rubicon into adulthood. Is it useful to work until adulthood? More details

Registration according to the law

Probationary period when concluding a fixed-term employment contract

When planning to hire a young employee under 18 years of age, the enterprise administration is obliged to take into account the special status of the employee. For example, Article 70 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation prohibits the use of a probationary period - there should not be such a clause in the signed employment contract.

The reasons for recognizing the illegality of the test are due to:

the lack of any qualifications and skills that could be tested during this period;
the danger of exerting psychological stress;
a short period of temporary employment, because often the work involves the employment of teenagers in the summer, which makes the test impractical.

In addition, on the eve of registration, the teenager must obtain written consent for the minor to work from his parents, a sample of which can be downloaded below, or obtained from the HR department of the enterprise. Additionally, guardianship permission is obtained if the child has not reached the age of 16.

Download Consent to work for a minor from parents (30.5 KiB, 271 hits)

Employment under a contract without a work book

In turn, employees of the supervisory authority consider the appeal of the legal representatives of the minor, studying the nature of the work, duration and compliance with the requirements for working conditions.

The step-by-step procedure for registering a child differs little from standard employment:

Submission of documents and applications.
Issuance of an order with subsequent review.
Signing an employment contract (if necessary, with the involvement of the child’s parents or adult representatives).
Making an entry in the labor or primary establishment of the document.

When determining the conditions for employment, based on specific circumstances, at what age can you work in a given situation,

Documentation

The package of documentation provided for registration at the enterprise differs from the list that is taken from an adult employee.

According to the law (Article 65 of the labor legislation), a teenager brings:

Personal identification document (passport, birth certificate).
A certificate from school, college, or other educational institution, and upon graduation - a diploma.
If a child is employed during the school year, bring a certificate with the schedule of classes.
Consent of parents and guardianship authorities (issued in writing in advance).

What documents are needed for employment?

The work record book, due to the lack of work experience, is drawn up upon initial hiring, which means it is the responsibility of the employer. Since the insurance certificate, on the basis of Article 7 of Law No. 27-FZ, is issued by the insurer, it is not provided upon first employment.

Military registration documents are provided only upon reaching a certain age. Since the beginning of military registration falls on the 17th birthday, a document on military registration will also not be required when registering a teenager.

From 14 years old

Due to his too young age, a 14-year-old child is hired to work exclusively for light labor. Frequent cases of employment of schoolchildren are their involvement in theatrical or cinematic activities, participation in productions, concerts, and circus performances.

A feature of official registration at this age is the need for the child’s legal representative to participate in signing the employment contract. The permission received from the guardianship authorities establishes the teenager’s maximum workload and mandatory work parameters.

An important condition is the absence of obstacles to full-fledged study and dangers to the health of the teenager.

From 16 years old

After the 16th birthday, the issue of employment is resolved more easily, since additional approval from supervisory authorities is no longer required. The length of working hours and the degree of workload at which one can work at 16 years old expands earning opportunities. Depending on whether the minor is studying, his working day reaches 4-7 hours. At this age, work activity is considered as part-time work during the period free from study, or as the beginning of full-time work activity.

Vacation, business trips, overtime

Leave for workers under the age of majority, as for other workers, must be granted annually and at a time convenient for such workers. Its duration is 31 days.

If we talk about business trips, overtime work and work on non-working days and holidays - all this is prohibited. The only exceptions are those categories of young workers who are engaged in cinema, concert activities, circus, etc.

Useful holidays. Where to find part-time work for teenagers Read more

Remuneration for children and adolescents

Business managers are required to know at what age a child can work. When calculating wages for minors, they must take into account the legal reduction in working hours. In case of time-based payment, the amount is calculated taking into account the short working day. If the work is piecework, it is paid based on prices.

The organization, at its own expense, can establish an additional payment up to the tariff rate for the time by which the working day is reduced.

Part-time work during free time is paid based on hours worked or output. Adolescents upon application are provided with paid leave of 31 days. The amount of earnings is set based on the minimum wage (minimum wage).

How long can you work

Naturally, children also have their own working time limits - they do not have to work 40 hours a week, like adults. According to the provisions of the Labor Code of Russia, children under 16 years old can work no more than 24 hours a week, children from 16 to 18 years old - no more than 35 hours a week, children under 16 years old who are still continuing their education at school - no more than 12 hours per week.

If we are talking about a shift, then for children from 14-15 years old the shift does not exceed 4 hours, for children 15-16 years old - 5 hours, for workers 16-18 years old - 7 hours, for those studying at school or college - no more 2.5 hours.

What jobs are prohibited for minors?

Teenagers under 18 years of age are prohibited from:

work in extreme conditions;
performing work involving heavy physical activity;
work in nightclubs, bars, gambling establishments;
in the production of tobacco and alcohol products, as well as goods for adults;
security of objects;
activities that provide access to drugs;
religious communities and organizations;
work on a rotational basis.

Punishment of the employer

If an employer tries to register a child unofficially in one way or another, he is at great risk. After all, a penalty will be applied to him for this. For officials it is 1000-5000 rubles, for individual entrepreneurs - 1000-5000 rubles or suspension of activities for up to 90 days. For legal entities, the penalty for such a violation is 30,000-50,000 rubles or suspension of activities for up to 90 days.

Exploitation of child labor even threatens the unscrupulous employer with criminal sentences. If minors were used for profit illegally, this is arrest for up to six months or restriction of freedom for up to 3 years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions. If several children were involved at once, then the punishment may be imprisonment for a term of 2-5 years and deprivation of the right to hold certain positions for up to 3 years.

Hiring minors 14 years old: features

The procedure for registering an employee under 18 years of age differs from the general procedure for employing citizens, however, there are no fundamental differences. Among the mandatory measures taken by the employer when registering employment relationships with teenagers are:

Hiring without the requirement to work on a probationary period.
Creation of special working conditions that are aimed at preserving the physical and mental health of a minor employee.
Request for written permission from the guardianship and trusteeship authorities for minors to perform work (if the candidate for the position is under 16 years of age).
Sending a minor to a medical institution to undergo a medical examination, the results of which will make it clear whether the child’s health allows him to carry out work or not.

Answers to common questions about hiring minors under 14 years of age

Question No. 1: Can a minor employee replace 3 additional days of vacation with monetary compensation?

Answer: No, the law prohibits employers from replacing additional leave with compensation for this category of employees.

Question No. 2: Can a minor employee refuse to go on vacation or write a statement about his desire to work more than 2.5 hours a day?

Answer: No, these requirements are based on the law and do not depend on the desire of the teenager himself - it is mandatory to go on vacation, as well as to work exclusively for the allotted time.
Rate the quality of the article. Your opinion is important to us:

Hiring minors 14 years old: documents for drawing up an employment contract

In order for a minor candidate to be hired, the following documents must be prepared to present to the future employer:

Russian Federation passport (this is why it is impossible to register a worker under 14 years of age - he does not yet have a passport);
a certificate from the school confirming completion of training (if you continue to attend classes);
certificate of education (if training is completed);
written consent of parents or legal representatives;
consent of representatives of guardianship and trusteeship authorities.

Where to look for vacancies?

We decided where we can work at 14 or 15 years old. But how to find suitable vacancies? There are such options.

Friends and neighbors can become your first employers.
At the school/college where you study. Approach the head teacher or class teacher. Find out if there are vacancies. Often during the holidays, schools and other educational institutions bring in students to help with cleaning, etc.
Advertisements in newspapers (under adult supervision).
Go to the job center.
Approach advertisers, if possible, and propose your candidacy (for the position of promoter).
Place an advertisement on special websites on the Internet.

Stand right

These are the requirements for the job description of a private security guard, approved by a departmental order. The most important thing here is a clear definition of the rights and responsibilities of the security guard, what he should do, what he has the right to do, and what he is prohibited from doing. And also what threatens him if he breaks these rules.

We have heard loud stories where private security guards or simply employees of commercial enterprises, posing as private security officers, committed not only offenses, but also crimes.

So the need for such a document is long overdue. And how many cases have there been of illegal searches of store customers, rudeness at face control, fights in supposedly guarded parking lots.

In general, the history of private security in Russia, to put it mildly, is zigzag. At first, outright bandits actively joined this guard - they needed to legalize firearms and organize raider takeovers. After a series of police special operations, they were replaced by former security officials - retired officers of the army, police, and special services. They conscientiously fulfilled their duties and extinguished the intensity of public indignation against private security companies.

But more than ten years have passed, military pensioners also left their posts. And now the private security forces are mostly young people, who often have not served in the army. And in general, they did not serve anywhere, did not work, and did not even study. Well, maybe in middle school. They cannot get any job and naively believe that a private security guard is some kind of watchman. Like, you don’t need to do anything, just keep an eye on overall order. But this is far from true. And unpleasant and even tragic stories happen.

The private security company can no longer be part of the structure of the organization it protects. The head of security is not a subordinate of the director

The order of the Russian Guard dispels these dangerous illusions. The key words in the document are “standard instructions”.

In theory, everything is simple and, moreover, indicated in all codes. For example, a private security guard is not allowed to even touch a customer in a supermarket unless he is clearly smashing something or, especially, shooting or exploding.

In general, dear security guards, call the police and try to stop this fool! By the way, these are the actions that should be specified in the instructions. Yes, guys in security uniforms are required to immobilize hooligans or thieves. And at the same time, do not cause them bodily harm. It is important. This is precisely what unprofessional security guards forget about, who were not taught anything, but were hired as guards, to put it mildly, by advertisement.

That is, from now on, all instructions for the private security of any object anywhere in the country must be drawn up according to one template. You just need to fill it out correctly.

A prerequisite is that this template includes specific rights, duties and responsibilities of the security guard, adapted to the specific security object. Previously, it happened that responsibilities were defined vaguely, rights were interpreted very freely and, to put it mildly, broadly. And responsibility was often modestly kept silent.

However, the template assumes sufficient flexibility, which is logical. Yes, the specifics of security for a store, a bank or, say, an oil refinery are different. In some places you can only hold the thief until the police arrive, but in others you can only shoot to kill.

But the trick is that separately written instructions for a specific object must be endorsed - or not endorsed - in the territorial division of the Russian Guard. The legalized relationship between the security customer and the head of the security organization is also important here. They are equal partners in the “client-performer” scheme. The private security company can no longer be part of the structure of the organization it protects. The head of security is not a subordinate of the director and does not fulfill, so to speak, unofficial, sometimes illegal, or even criminal requests. He does only what is specified in the contract and in this very standard instruction, where everything, again, is according to the template.

Of course, these agreements and instructions in the Russian Guard are fully verified with the legislation, including the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. This is guaranteed liability: he exceeded his official authority or, conversely, committed criminal negligence - don’t blame him. Remember the tragedy in “Winter Cherry”, where the guards did not exceed anything, but also did not fulfill their direct duties to ensure safety and save people.

That is, for security employers and for the security guards themselves, there is now no loophole that is dangerous for all of us. They say that their facility is so complex, important and especially dangerous that employees might break something somewhere. This is where the National Guard will study the specifics of this protected object and limit the zeal of the guard to the law.