Connecticut’s child labor laws are stricter than federal rules in several ways: most children under 16 cannot be employed at all outside a short list of jobs, 16- and 17-year-olds face daily and weekly hour caps that tighten during the school year, and night shifts are limited by industry. Employers who break these rules face a $600 civil penalty for each violation, and willful conduct can bring criminal charges.
Who Can Work and at What Age
Connecticut prohibits employing children under 16 in most industries, including manufacturing, retail, restaurants, bowling alleys, barber shops, and theaters.1Justia. Connecticut Code 31-23 – Employment of Minors Prohibited in Certain Occupations. Exceptions Federal law is more permissive, generally allowing 14- and 15-year-olds to work in non-hazardous jobs during non-school hours. In Connecticut, that door is mostly closed.
A few narrow openings exist for younger teens:
- At 14, a minor may work as a caddie or in a pro shop at a golf course.
- At 15, a minor may work as a lifeguard, on youth camp staff, or as a bagger, cashier, or stock clerk in a retail store.
Even those jobs come with tight limits. Employment for 14- and 15-year-olds under these exceptions is generally restricted to school vacation periods of five or more consecutive days, capped at 40 hours per week and 8 hours per day, and permitted only between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. (extended to 9:00 p.m. from July 1 through Labor Day). One carve-out: a 15-year-old working in a retail food store may also work on Saturdays during the school year.1Justia. Connecticut Code 31-23 – Employment of Minors Prohibited in Certain Occupations. Exceptions
The under-16 prohibition does not reach agricultural work, domestic service, street trades, or newspaper distribution. Minors in approved work-study programs, municipal summer work-recreation programs, or on vocational probation or parole may also qualify for exceptions.1Justia. Connecticut Code 31-23 – Employment of Minors Prohibited in Certain Occupations. Exceptions
Working Papers Come Before the First Shift
Before a minor under 18 starts a job in Connecticut, the employer must have a valid age certificate on file. Most people call these working papers. The superintendent of schools in the minor’s district, or a designated agent, issues the certificate after confirming the minor’s age and that the job is legal for someone their age.2Justia. Connecticut Code 10-193 – Certificate of Age for Employment of Minors
The certificate type depends on the job and the minor’s age. Manufacturing, mechanical, theatrical, restaurant, bowling alley, and barber shop jobs require a certificate showing the minor is at least 16. Retail positions, youth camp staff roles, and lifeguard jobs require a certificate showing the minor is at least 15. Golf course positions require a certificate showing the minor is at least 14.2Justia. Connecticut Code 10-193 – Certificate of Age for Employment of Minors
The workflow is straightforward. The minor interviews, gets a job offer, and receives a written promise of employment from the employer. The minor then brings that letter, plus proof of age (birth certificate, passport, or similar), to the school’s designated office. The school reviews the paperwork, confirms the job is legal for the minor’s age, and issues the papers. The employer keeps the certificate on file until two years after the minor turns 18.3Connecticut State Department of Education. Connecticut’s Working Papers Manual Guidelines and Procedures for the Employment of Minors in Connecticut
Hour Limits for 16- and 17-Year-Olds
The hour caps for older teens depend on whether the minor is still enrolled in school and whether school is in session that week. They apply across manufacturing, retail, restaurant, and amusement industries.
When school is in session, a minor enrolled in a secondary institution can work up to 6 hours on a regular school day and up to 8 hours on a day immediately preceding a non-school day (typically Friday). The weekly cap during school weeks is 32 hours.4Connecticut Department of Labor. Connecticut Time and Hour Restrictions for 16 and 17 Year-Old Minors
During non-school weeks (summer, winter break, spring break), the limits loosen to 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, with a maximum of 6 days worked per week.4Connecticut Department of Labor. Connecticut Time and Hour Restrictions for 16 and 17 Year-Old Minors
Hours spent in an approved educational plan, cooperative program, or school-to-work program do not count against the daily or weekly caps.5Connecticut General Assembly. Chapter 557 – Employment Regulation Minors under 18 who have already graduated from high school are treated as adults for hour purposes and are not subject to these restrictions.
Night Work Curfews by Industry
Connecticut sets different curfews depending on where the minor works. Employers most commonly slip up here because the rules are not uniform.
Manufacturing, Mechanical, and Retail Establishments
Minors under 18 cannot work between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. in these workplaces. On a night that does not precede a regularly scheduled school day, the curfew extends to 11:00 p.m. Supermarkets of 3,500 square feet or more get a further extension to midnight on non-school nights. A minor cannot be fired or punished for refusing to work past 10:00 p.m.6Justia. Connecticut Code 31-14 – Night Work of Minors Regulated
Restaurants, Amusement, and Recreational Establishments
The baseline curfew is the same 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. window, but these industries allow 16- and 17-year-olds to work until 11:00 p.m. on nights preceding a school day and until midnight on all other nights, including during school vacations.7Justia. Connecticut Code 31-18 – Hours of Employment in Restaurants, Amusement Establishments, and Other Establishments Theaters follow the same schedule.
The practical difference: a 17-year-old working at a retail clothing store on a Thursday night during the school year must stop at 10:00 p.m. The same teenager working at a restaurant that same Thursday could work until 11:00 p.m.
Jobs Minors Cannot Do
Connecticut bans minors under 18 from any occupation the Department of Public Health has declared hazardous to health or the Department of Labor has declared hazardous in other respects.1Justia. Connecticut Code 31-23 – Employment of Minors Prohibited in Certain Occupations. Exceptions The state-level prohibitions align with the federal Hazardous Occupations Orders, which cover 17 categories of particularly dangerous work.
The federal list, which Connecticut incorporates, prohibits minors under 18 from jobs involving:
- Manufacturing or storing explosives
- Driving or serving as an outside helper on a motor vehicle
- Coal mining, metal mines, quarries, and underground work
- Woodworking machines, metal-forming machines, bakery machines, meat-processing machines, and hoisting equipment like forklifts and cranes
- Radioactive substances, ionizing radiation, or dangerous chemicals
- Wrecking, demolition, and ship-breaking operations
Connecticut adds another layer for children under 16. State law specifically forbids anyone under 16 from working with machinery belts while power is attached, handling dangerous acids, soldering, manufacturing paints or explosives, working on scaffolding, performing heavy building-trade work, or working in tunnels, mines, or quarries.5Connecticut General Assembly. Chapter 557 – Employment Regulation
One area of common confusion: minors can work in establishments that sell alcohol, like grocery stores or restaurants, but generally cannot serve it.
Minimum Wage Applies at Any Age
Connecticut’s minimum wage is $16.94 per hour as of January 1, 2026.9Connecticut Department of Labor. State of Connecticut – Minimum Wage Information The rate applies to minor employees the same as it does to adults. Connecticut does not carve out a lower training wage or youth subminimum.
Federal law technically lets employers pay workers under 20 as little as $4.25 per hour during their first 90 calendar days of employment.10U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #32: Youth Minimum Wage When state law sets a higher minimum with no youth exception, the state rate controls. Connecticut’s minimum wage contains no age-based exception, so $16.94 is the floor for every worker regardless of age.
Child Performers Follow a Separate Track
Entertainment work has its own permitting system. Any employer hiring a child under 18 for an artistic or creative service in Connecticut must first obtain a certificate of eligibility from the Department of Labor, and the child must hold a child performer permit issued by the DOL.11Connecticut General Assembly. An Act Concerning the Protection of Child Performers Artistic or creative service covers acting, dancing, singing, stunt work, voice-over, broadcasting, songwriting, directing, and producing. News interviews and news-story participation are excluded.
For school-age children, the DOL issues a permit only with proof of good academic standing, and the permit lasts six months. If a child performer’s gross earnings exceed $10,000 in any calendar year, the employer or parent must establish a trust for the child before the permit will be issued or renewed.11Connecticut General Assembly. An Act Concerning the Protection of Child Performers This parallel system means children under 16 who would otherwise be barred from theatrical work can perform with the right permits.12U.S. Department of Labor. Child Entertainment Laws
Penalties and Retaliation Protection
Connecticut employers face a $600 civil penalty for each child labor violation under Chapters 557 and 558. Violations of the broader employment regulation statutes carry a separate $300 civil penalty per violation, which can stack on top of any specific penalty for the underlying offense.13Connecticut General Assembly. An Act Concerning Technical Corrections to Child Labor Laws Criminal penalties exist under Connecticut General Statutes Section 31-15a for certain violations, particularly where the conduct was willful or caused harm to the minor. Each violation is penalized separately, so an employer who schedules five minors past curfew on the same night faces five penalties, not one.
A minor who reports a violation is protected from retaliation. The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits firing, demoting, or otherwise punishing an employee who files a complaint, participates in an investigation, or testifies in a proceeding related to labor law violations.14U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #77A: Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Connecticut’s night work statute adds a state-level protection: a minor under 18 cannot be discharged or discriminated against for refusing to work past 10:00 p.m.6Justia. Connecticut Code 31-14 – Night Work of Minors Regulated Remedies under the FLSA include reinstatement, back pay, and an equal amount in liquidated damages.
Why Following Federal Law Is Not Enough
When both federal and state child labor laws apply, the stricter rule wins.8U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #43: Child Labor Provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act for Nonagricultural Occupations In most areas, that is Connecticut. Federal law allows 14- and 15-year-olds to work in a range of non-hazardous jobs during non-school hours, up to 3 hours on school days and 18 hours during school weeks. Connecticut bars most employment for children under 16 outright except during school vacation periods and in a limited set of roles.
For 16- and 17-year-olds, the FLSA imposes no hour limits at all for non-hazardous work, while Connecticut caps school-week employment at 32 hours and enforces industry-specific night curfews. The federal hazardous occupation orders do apply in Connecticut and set the baseline for what under-18 workers cannot do, but the state’s Department of Labor and Department of Public Health can designate additional occupations as hazardous.1Justia. Connecticut Code 31-23 – Employment of Minors Prohibited in Certain Occupations. Exceptions An employer who only checks the FLSA is likely already in violation of state law.