Rules and Regulations for Teen workers

There are many rules and regulations in place in Washington State to help protect workers of all ages, including specific rules and regulations for young workers. These regulations will differ depending on your age and what kind of job you have. There are two categories of jobs you can work in: non-agricultural jobs and agricultural jobs.

Click below for information on specific rules and regulations:

• Prohibited jobs
• Work hours
• Meal and rest breaks
• Wages
• Workers' compensation
• Special variance
• Parent/school authorization forms

Labor laws are in place to protect teenagers from doing dangerous work. Because of the possible hazards, some jobs in Washington are restricted based on age.

A few examples of prohibited jobs or tasks for teens include:

• Driving a vehicle or forklift
• Operating or cleaning meat slicers
• Using power-driven woodworking equipment such as saws or drills
• Working more than 10 feet above ground or floor level
• Selling candy, flowers, etc. to passing motorists on public roads
• Roofing

For more detailed information on prohibited or restricted jobs in Washington, see: http://www.lni.wa.gov/scs/workstandards/teenworker.htm.

A Special note about restricted jobs:

*Under certain conditions, a teenager can carry out some of these hazardous duties. In these cases, he or she must be a student that is participating in an approved vocational education program, diversified career experience program, or work experience program through their school district or when involved in a registered apprenticeship program.

There are rules that limit the number of hours a teen can work. These limits include:

• The number of hours you can work in a day
• How early or late you can work
• The total number of hours you can work in a week

The number of hours you can work varies, based on the time of year (non-school time is considered to be from June 1 through Labor Day), your age, and whether or not you are working in agriculture. For more detailed information on work hours for teens in Washington, see: http://www.lni.wa.gov/scs/workstandards/teenworker.htm

You are permitted to take meal breaks and rest breaks depending on how many hours you work and your age. Meal breaks must be uninterrupted and separate from rest breaks.

The amount a teen worker is paid depends on the worker’s age and the type of work he or she is doing. The minimum wage in Washington State increases on January 1st each year. An employer may pay a 14 or 15 year-old employee less than the minimum wage, but cannot pay less than 85% of the minimum wage. If you receive tips, under state law, they cannot be counted towards your minimum wage.

If you work over 40 hours a week you are entitled to overtime pay. Overtime pay is equal to one and a half times a worker’s regular rate of pay.

For more information on the current minimum wage in Washington State or overtime, see: http://www.lni.wa.gov/WorkplaceRights/Wages/Minimum/default.asp

Anyone who is injured on the job, with an injury that requires more than first aid, is entitled to file an injury claim to cover the costs of medical care. If the injury results in lost work time of more than 3 days, wage replacement is also provided.

For more information about workers' compensation in Washington State, see: http://lni.wa.gov/Main/claimCBT/phase1.asp


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In some cases a 16 or 17 year old student may want or need to work more than 4 hours a day or 20 hours a week. In order to do this, a special variance must be completed. A special variance requires approval by the student's parent or guardian, the student's school district representative, and the student's employer. Only students who are 16 or 17 years old may apply for a special variance.

If all three parties approve the special variance, it will allow the student to work 6 hour shifts, up to 28 hours per week in a non-agricultural job during the school year. A special variance does not require approval of the Department of Labor & Industries.

In order for a teacher to approve a special variance for a student, the school district must first apply with the Department of Labor & Industries to be part of the special variance program.

In Washington, the responsibility for getting a minor work permit falls to your employer. As part of the work permit process, your employer must keep a copy of the Parent/School Authorization form on file.

In order for you to work during the school year, a Parent/School Authorization form must first be signed by both your parent or guardian and the authorized teacher at your school. It is the responsibility of your employer to provide the form to you.

The employer needs to include the following information on the form:

• The location of the workplace
• A description of your job duties
• The earliest and latest hours you will be working
• The total number of hours you will work per week

Because these forms expire on September 30th of each year, your employer will need to provide you with a new form that needs authorized signatures each year.

For more information about parent/school authorization forms in Washington State, see:
http://www.lni.wa.gov/WorkplaceRights/TeenWorkers/HiringMinors/default.asp

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