The Isle of Wight council share this latest news. Ed
The Isle of Wight Council is raising awareness of child employment legislation to ensure children engaged in part-time employment do so legally and safely.
The council issues an average of 120 child employment permits a year, to young people across the Island.
These permits, which are free of charge, are necessary to comply with employment laws and are available from the local authority.
Shephard: Welfare of children is paramount
The most popular jobs on the Island for young people include café work, newspaper delivery and shop work.
Lora Shephard, the council’s education and inclusion support officer, said:
“The welfare of children is paramount and if they are taking part in part-time work opportunities, we need to ensure their needs are being met by employers and that children who do work are doing so safely.
“Isle of Wight Council officers regularly visit businesses across the Island to make sure young people in part-time jobs are safe and working legally.”
Age restrictions
From the age of 13, young people can take part in light work in a number of different areas, including shop and office work and working in cafes, restaurants, hairdressing salons and riding stables.
The regulations apply up until the child is no longer classed as being of compulsory school age (compulsory school age ends on the last Friday in June if the child will be 16 by the end of the summer holidays).
Limit on working hours
The legislation contains limits on working hours and provides restrictions on the types of employment children can undertake.
No child may be employed before 7am or after 7pm on any day.
No child may work for more than four hours without a break of at least one hour and no child can work for more than two hours on a Sunday.
During term time, no child can be employed for more than 12 hours per week and there are also other guidelines for the number of hours during holiday times that children can work.
No child aged below 13 is allowed to work in England unless they are taking part in a performance and have a performance licence.
Anyone breaking the laws and byelaws covering child employment faces a fine of up to £1,000.
Brading: Safeguarding first step into the adult world
Councillor Paul Brading, Cabinet member for children’s services, said:
“A part-time job can be beneficial in developing a young person’s skills in teamwork and timekeeping, getting a reference when applying for jobs and courses in the future and earning extra pocket money.
“Some young people build a career out of their part-time job.
“For a young person, getting a job and earning money is an exciting first step into the adult world and we, as a local authority aim to support and safeguard them as they take this step.”
For more details on Child Employment, please visit the Isle of Wight Council’s Child Employment Website.
Image: steve long under CC BY 2.0
