Jobs at 14 in Ohio: Hours, Work Permits, and Pay

At 14, you can legally work in Ohio in a range of non-hazardous jobs once you have a school-issued work permit and a job offer in hand. Retail, food service, office work, yard work, and errands are all on the table. Hours are tightly capped during the school year, and pay for workers under 16 starts at the federal minimum of $7.25 per hour rather than Ohio’s higher adult rate. The rules below cover what you can do, what you can’t, and how to line up your first paycheck.

Jobs a 14-Year-Old Can Take in Ohio

Federal law sets the categories of work open to 14- and 15-year-olds, and Ohio follows those limits. The permitted categories are:

Retail work: cashiering, selling, price marking, packing, stocking shelves, and bagging groceries.
Food service: washing dishes, busing tables, cleaning kitchen surfaces, reheating food, and limited cooking on electric or gas grills without open flames. Simple equipment like toasters, blenders, and coffee grinders is fine.
Office and clerical work: filing, data entry, and answering phones.
Creative and intellectual work: tutoring, computer programming, singing, acting, or playing an instrument.
Errands and delivery on foot, by bicycle, or by public transit.
Yard work and cleanup, including raking and hand trimming, as long as no power-driven mowers or cutters are involved.
Dispensing gas or oil, and hand-washing and hand-polishing vehicles.

Grocery stores, fast-food restaurants, ice cream shops, and local retail are the most common first employers for Ohio teens. Caddying at a golf course is another classic option. Lifeguarding at a traditional swimming pool is not open at 14; that job requires certification and a minimum age of 15.

Casual work outside a formal employment relationship sits in a separate category. Babysitting, mowing neighbors’ lawns, and doing minor chores around private homes don’t require a work permit and aren’t bound by the hour rules that apply to regular jobs.²

Work That’s Off-Limits

Ohio prohibits anyone under 16 from working in occupations considered hazardous or detrimental to their health. In practice, that rules out manufacturing, mining, construction, and any job that involves operating power-driven machinery beyond the narrow kitchen equipment allowed above. Handling dangerous chemicals, loading or unloading trucks or conveyors, and working from ladders or scaffolding are all off-limits.

The line inside food service catches people off guard. You can use electric or gas grills that don’t have an open flame, and deep fryers with automatic basket-lowering devices. Everything else is largely restricted: no baking, no rotisseries or pressure cookers, no power-driven food slicers or grinders, and no work inside freezers or meat coolers beyond stepping in briefly to grab something. Kitchen cleanup is allowed only on surfaces and equipment below 100°F.³

A job title doesn’t override the rules. If a “stock clerk” role turns into operating a forklift or a power saw, decline the task. The law puts the risk on the employer, not on you.

Hours You Can Work

Ohio Revised Code 4109.07 sets when and how much a 14- or 15-year-old can work, and the limits change with the school calendar.

During the school year:

No more than 3 hours on a school day.
No more than 18 hours per week.
Work must fall between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
No working during school hours, unless the job is part of an approved vocational or work-study program.

When school is out for summer or a holiday break of five or more school days:

Up to 8 hours per day.
Up to 40 hours per week.
The evening curfew extends to 9:00 p.m. from June 1 through September 1 and during qualifying school holidays.

⁴

Two rules apply regardless of the season. The 40-hour weekly cap holds year-round, and no employer can work a minor more than five consecutive hours without a 30-minute rest break. That break is unpaid.

Getting Your Work Permit

Before starting any formal job, a 14- or 15-year-old in Ohio must obtain an age and schooling certificate, usually called a work permit. It’s issued by the superintendent of the school district where you live, or by the head of the private or community school you attend.⁵

The steps:

Get the job offer first. You need a promise of employment from a specific employer, who fills out their portion of the application with the job description and planned hours.
Gather documents proving you’re at least 14, such as a birth certificate or state ID, plus written consent from a parent or guardian.
Complete a physical if required. A physician’s certificate confirming you’re physically able to do the job may be needed; a current sports physical on file at your school can sometimes satisfy this.
Sign the application in person, in front of the issuing school official.
Submit to your school for review. If everything checks out, the certificate is issued electronically.

The permit is tied to a specific job. Change employers and you need a new one. Schools can also revoke a permit if a student is expelled, withdraws, or stops attending regularly.

What You’ll Get Paid

Ohio’s minimum wage for 2026 is $11.00 per hour for most workers, but employees under 16 are entitled only to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.⁶

A separate rule lets employers with annual gross receipts under $405,000 pay the federal minimum to all employees regardless of age. So $7.25 is the floor for anyone under 16 in Ohio, and for everyone at smaller businesses.

Many employers pay above the floor to attract teen workers, particularly in food service and retail. Some pay exactly $7.25. Ask about the hourly rate up front when you’re comparing offers.

Family Business and Farm Exceptions

If your parents own the business, the rules bend. A child of any age can work in a business entirely owned by their parents, with two guardrails: minors under 16 still can’t work in manufacturing or mining, and no one under 18 can work in occupations the U.S. Secretary of Labor has declared hazardous.²

Agriculture runs on its own track. Ohio’s prohibitions on hazardous farm work don’t apply to minors working on farms operated by their parents, grandparents, or legal guardians. Off the family farm, 14- and 15-year-olds can do non-hazardous agricultural work when school isn’t in session. A teen who completes a 4-H or vocational agriculture training program and holds a certificate of completion can operate tractors and certain machinery they’ve been trained on, starting at 14.⁷

If an Employer Breaks the Rules

If you’re asked to stay past curfew, skip the mandatory break, or take on a task that feels unsafe, the law backs you up in saying no. Employers face significant civil penalties for child labor violations under federal law, with higher penalties when a violation causes injury.⁸ A parent who suspects a violation can file a complaint with the Ohio Department of Commerce or the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

1
U.S. Department of Labor. Non-Agricultural Jobs – 14-15
2
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 43 – Child Labor Provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for Nonagricultural Occupations
3
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 58 – Cooking and Baking Under the Federal Child Labor Provisions of Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
4
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 4109.07 – Restrictions on Hours of Employment
5
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 3331.01 – Age and Schooling Certificate Issuance
6
Ohio Department of Commerce. 2026 Minimum Wage Poster
7
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Administrative Code Rule 4101:9-2-03 – Hazardous Occupations in Agriculture
8
eCFR. 29 CFR Part 579 – Child Labor Violations – Civil Money Penalties