The legal age to work in California is 14 for most non-hazardous retail, food service, and office jobs, though children as young as 12 can deliver newspapers and infants can appear in entertainment work under a separate permit system. California Labor Code Section 1290 sets 16 as the general floor for employment, but the state adopted federal standards through Section 1294.1 that open specific occupations to 14- and 15-year-olds.1California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 1290 – Employment of Minors2California Department of Industrial Relations. Child Labor Laws Pamphlet Almost every working minor between 12 and 18 needs a school-issued work permit before the first shift.
Minimum Working Age by Job Type
California’s system is tiered. Each age bracket unlocks a different set of jobs, and when state and federal rules overlap, the stricter one controls.
- Ages 12 and 13 can work only in narrow categories. Twelve is the minimum age for selling or delivering newspapers, magazines, and similar periodicals under Labor Code Section 1298. Agricultural work on a parent’s own property is permitted at any age, but never during school hours.
- Ages 14 and 15 can take jobs in retail stores, restaurants, offices, and other occupations listed in the federal regulations California has adopted. Manufacturing, processing, and any hazardous work stay off-limits.
- Ages 16 and 17 can work in most industries, including manufacturing, but remain barred from the 17 federal hazardous occupation categories and from state-listed dangerous tasks such as roofing, excavation, and operating certain power-driven machines.
Children of any age can perform in film, television, theater, and related entertainment work under a separate permit system run by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Infants as young as 15 days old can appear on set, with mandatory supervision and tight time caps.3California Department of Industrial Relations. Entertainment Industry – Summary Chart of Hours of Work
The Work Permit Requirement
Almost every minor under 18 needs a work permit before starting a job in California. The permit is issued by the minor’s school district, and the district has full discretion to say no — the Education Code sections that authorize permits use “may,” not “shall.”4California Department of Education. Frequently Asked Questions – Work Permits
The process is straightforward once the minor has a job offer. The student picks up a Statement of Intent to Employ a Minor (Form B1-1) from the school and fills in personal information. The employer completes a section describing the job, confirms workers’ compensation coverage, and signs. A parent or guardian signs to consent. The completed form goes back to the school, and if the proposed job checks out, the school issues the actual permit (Form B1-4).5State of California Department of Industrial Relations. Statement of Intent to Employ a Minor and Request for a Work Permit – Certificate of Age The employer must keep that permit on file for at least three years and produce it on demand.4California Department of Education. Frequently Asked Questions – Work Permits
Permits don’t last forever. A standard permit expires five school days after the start of the next school year, and full-time permits for 14- and 15-year-olds expire at the end of the current school year.6State of California Department of Industrial Relations. Permit to Employ and Work A new permit is needed whenever a minor changes employers.
Schools can also revoke a permit. Under Education Code Section 49116, a permit may be pulled if the school decides the job is hurting the student’s health or education, if any condition of the permit is being violated, or if the minor is doing prohibited work. A teen whose grades slip or whose attendance drops can lose work authorization with little warning.
Emancipated minors still fall under all of California’s child labor laws. The only real difference is that they can apply for a permit without a parent’s signature.7California Department of Industrial Relations. Information on Minors and Employment
How Many Hours Minors Can Work
Labor Code Section 1391 splits hour rules into two age groups, and each group has tighter limits during the school year and looser limits during breaks.8California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 1391 – Working Hours
Ages 14 and 15
When school is in session, the cap is three hours on a school day and 18 hours in a school week. During summer and other school breaks, that rises to eight hours a day and 40 hours a week. Work can’t start before 7 a.m. or run past 7 p.m., except from June 1 through Labor Day, when the evening cutoff moves to 9 p.m.
Ages 16 and 17
The overall caps are eight hours a day and 48 hours a week. On school days, the daily maximum drops to four hours. Older teens can work between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. on evenings before a school day, and until 12:30 a.m. on evenings before a non-school day.
Jobs Minors Can’t Do
Some work stays off-limits regardless of a permit or parental consent. The restrictions are strictest for younger teens and loosen as the minor gets older, but a set of hazardous occupations is closed to every minor under 18.
Under 16
Labor Code Sections 1292 through 1294 bar anyone under 16 from working with or around machinery, including adjusting belts, oiling equipment, or cleaning moving parts.9California Legislative Information. California Code Labor Code 1292 – Occupational Privileges and Restrictions The bans also cover saws, wood-polishing machines, printing presses, dough brakes, rolling-mill machinery, railroads, commercial vessels, work involving poisonous acids or gases, scaffolding, tunnels, excavation, mines, and driving any motor vehicle.
Under 18
California adopted the federal hazardous occupation orders through Labor Code Section 1294.1. The federal list runs 17 categories covering explosives, motor vehicle driving, coal mining, logging, power-driven woodworking and metalworking machines, radioactive materials, hoisting equipment like forklifts, meat-processing machines and slicers, bakery equipment, and paper balers and compactors.10U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 43 – Child Labor Provisions of the FLSA for Nonagricultural Occupations Where state and federal rules overlap, the broader ban wins. A 17-year-old can’t operate a circular saw just because the state statute names minors under 16; the federal order extends that same ban through age 17.2California Department of Industrial Relations. Child Labor Laws Pamphlet
State-approved apprenticeships and vocational training programs can qualify for limited exemptions, but only with proper school coordination and parental approval.
Pay Rules for Teen Workers
California doesn’t have a subminimum wage for minors. As of January 1, 2026, the state minimum wage is $16.90 per hour, and it applies to teen workers the same as everyone else.11California Department of Industrial Relations. Minimum Wage Federal law allows a $4.25 training wage for workers under 20 during their first 90 days, but California’s higher minimum overrides it, so employers here can’t use the federal youth rate.12U.S. Department of Labor. Subminimum Wage
Family Business and Entertainment Exceptions
Parents who employ their own children in agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, or domestic labor on property the parent owns, operates, or controls are exempt from most of California’s child labor framework. No work permit is required, the occupational restrictions don’t apply, and the standard hour limits are set aside. One rule still holds: the child can’t work during school hours.2California Department of Industrial Relations. Child Labor Laws Pamphlet The exemption is narrower than many parents assume. A parent who owns a retail store or restaurant does not qualify; only the listed agricultural and domestic categories are covered.
Entertainment work runs on its own track. Permits come from the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement rather than the school district, and hours are set in fine increments by age. A parent or guardian must be on set, and a studio teacher is required for school-age performers.3California Department of Industrial Relations. Entertainment Industry – Summary Chart of Hours of Work
What Employers Face for Breaking the Rules
Employing a minor in violation of California’s child labor provisions is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $1,000 to $5,000, up to six months in county jail, or both. A willful violation raises the maximum fine to $10,000, though jail time is reserved for offenders with a prior child labor conviction.
Civil penalties run separately, administered by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in two tiers. Class A violations — employing a minor in a hazardous occupation, breaking hour limits — carry $1,000 for a first offense, $2,000 for a second, and $5,000 for each additional violation.13California Department of Industrial Relations. California Code of Regulations Title 8 Section 11779 – Penalties for Class A Violations Class B violations, like recordkeeping failures, run $100, $200, and $500 for first, second, and additional offenses.14California Department of Industrial Relations. California Code of Regulations Title 8 Section 11781 – Penalties for Class B Violations Penalties apply per violation, so an employer breaking multiple rules for multiple minor employees can accumulate serious liability. Under Labor Code Section 1304, the absence of a work permit on file is treated as presumptive evidence of illegal employment, and the employer carries the burden of proving the hire was lawful.