Information From Iowa Labor Services Division
What Iowa's Employers and Working Youth Need To Know...
Youth under the age of 16 in Iowa are required to have a work
permit before starting work. The following information is intended
to clarify some of the Iowa Child Labor laws.
Who
needs a work permit? People under 16 years of age cannot be
employed or permitted to work, with or without compensation, unless
the person, firm, or corporation employing the youth receives and
keeps a work permit on file, accessible to any officer charged with
the enforcement of the child labor laws. The employer also is
required to keep a complete list of the names and ages of anyone
under 16 years of age in his employ.
How to get a work permit. A youth first must go in
person to the local school official designated as an issuing officer
or the Iowa Workforce Development Center and provide one of the
following acceptable forms of evidence of age: a certified copy of a
birth certificate, current passport or certified copy of baptismal
record showing the date and place of birth and the place of the
child’s baptism. If none of these is available, then a written
certification from a physician appointed by the local board of
education certifying that, in the physician’s opinion, the applicant
is 14 years of age or older, is required. The employer then must
complete the work permit (Child Labor Form), specifically listing
all work the minor will be performing, equipment he will use, and
hours to be worked. After completing this section, the minor’s
parent completes and signs his portion of the form. The form then is
returned to the issuing officer for review and approval.
What hours can 14 or 15-year-olds work? Outside
school hours, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., from the day after Labor
Day (in September) through May 31, and no more than four hours per
day, Monday through Friday, or eight hours per day on Saturdays,
Sundays and holidays. No more than a total of 28 hours per week is
allowed. From June 1 through Labor Day, a minor may work up to eight
hours per day between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., but not more than 40 hours
per week.
Federal child labor laws restrict maximum work hours to 18 hours
per week, from the day after Labor Day (in September) through May
31, with three hours per day, Monday through Friday, outside of
school hours, and eight hours on Saturday, Sundays and holidays,
between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Who needs a Certificate of Age? An employer may require that
a prospective minor employee obtain a Certificate of Age. Youths who
are 16 or older can obtain a Certificate of Age by going to the
local Workforce Development Center or the local school official
designated as the issuing officer with one of the following
acceptable forms of evidence of age: a certified copy of a birth
certificate, current passport or certified copy of a baptismal
certificate, or a physician’s certification of age, completed by a
physician appointed by the local board of education certifying that,
in the physician’s opinion, the minor is 14 years of age or older.
Under Iowa Child Labor laws, Iowa Code Chapter 92, minors
under the age of 18 are prohibited from working in certain
occupations, performing certain duties, and from using certain
equipment.
For more information on federal child labor laws, contact the U.S.
Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, in Des Moines at (515)
284-4625.
(For an employer subject to both state and federal child labor laws,
the employer should follow the more restrictive law.)
Iowa
Wage Payment Collection and Minimum Wage
Learn about Iowa's Minimum Wage Law, Direct Deposit and Pay Stub
information from the Iowa Division of Labor.
Fair Labor Standards
Act (FSLA)
The FSLA has established federal child labor rules, minimum wage,
overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor rules affecting full-
and part-time workers.
Hiring
Iowa Teens - Easy To Hire - A guide for employers about hiring
teenagers and the Iowa Child Labor Law.
Visit
Iowa Labors Services Division - Child Labor Laws and Work
Permits
