Looking for a summer job
Those warm rays of sunshine that broke through this frosty month of May serve as a reminder that summer is quickly approaching and that kids need something to do. Something productive would be good and something that lines their pockets with their own hard-earned cash rather than their parents would be even better. But how old must they be to get a job? And what kind of work can they safely and legally perform?
There was a time, just go ask your grandparents, when kids were put to work early and for long hours. Some great stories involve busy switchboards manned by little boys scrambling over top of each other to plug in wires to make the phones work or reporting for their first job in the mines.
Nowadays there are such things as child labor laws. The federal government has rules and so does Pennsylvania. To help sort through all those laws that protect kids but sometimes confuse youth, their parents and their employers the U.S. Department of Labor launched a Web site that’s easy to navigate.
If you’re one of the 4 million teen-agers who plans to hold down a summer job this season, you might want to check out the list of jobs you can hold. For example, 14- and 15-year-olds can work in offices, grocery stores, movie theaters and gas stations, but they can’t use power tools or operate heavy machinery.
It’s also a good idea to know in advance how many hours kids can work and mandatory quitting time.
The Web site found at YouthRules!: http://www.youthrules.dol.gov/ could help plenty of kids and employers sort through the rules for summer employment.