As the school year ends, many employers are gearing up to hire high school students and interns for summer jobs. Hiring teenagers and interns over the summer can benefit employers — not only by bringing fresh perspectives, ideas and solutions to businesses, but also by helping existing employees develop their training and management skills. Employers, however, must remember to follow California’s rules for hiring minors, including:
- Obtaining valid work permits for minors;
- Complying with minor-specific wage-and-hour laws; and
- Taking steps to protect their safety.
And when bringing on seasonal interns, employers need to keep in mind California’s protections for interns, including the prohibition on treating unpaid interns as unpaid employees.
Work Permits
With few exceptions, employers must get valid work permits before employing a minor —even when school is out for summer break.
First, to get a work permit, the employer and minor complete the Minors — Statement of Intent to Employ and Request for Work Permit — Form B1-1. The minor fills out the form, and then their parent/guardian and employer signs it. The employer then files Form B1-1 with the superintendent for the minor’s school district.
Then, the school district’s superintendent issues the work permit, known as a Permit to Employ and Work — Form B1-4. The superintendent or other delegated school officials consider the minor’s health, education and welfare before issuing the permit. Even after issuing the permit, the school district can revoke it if it decides that this employment is impairing the minor’s health or education.
Employers should keep track of the work permit’s expiration date and check to ensure the minor’s proposed work schedule complies with the hours specified on the permit.
Age Restrictions, Prohibited Occupations
Both California and federal law establish restrictions on the hours minors can work and prohibit them from performing jobs declared hazardous by the U.S. Department of Labor. The total number of hours a minor can work, and how those hours are scheduled, varies depending on the age of the minor and the time of year in which work will be performed.
Generally, minors between the ages of 12 and 15 cannot work as many hours or as late in the day as minors who are 16 or 17 years old. Restrictions are more complex when school is in session. To learn more about these specific restrictions, employers may review the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) Minors Summary Chart, which breaks down the requirements and restrictions categorized by age.
Wage and Hour Laws
Generally, minors are entitled to the same wage and hour protections as older employees, including minimum wage, overtime, and meal and rest breaks. When hiring minors for the summer, it’s important to properly train them on company policies detailing the organization’s wage and hour practices. Employers should pay special attention to ensure that minors know:
- How to clock in and out using the employer’s timekeeping system.
- When to take their rest and meal breaks.
- They cannot work past their permitted hours.
- Who to ask if they have a problem with their timekeeping or other questions.
Safety
May is “Safe Jobs for Youth Month” in California, so it’s a great time for employers to review their workplace safety plans and training for new team members.
Training young workers on workplace safety plans and procedures is important. Minors are prohibited from working in many hazardous occupations, but injuries can happen in any workplace. Employers should look at their Illness and Injury Prevention Program (IIPP), required by California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) regulations, and provide the training and instruction appropriate for the minor’s position. Some best safety practices when hiring minors include:
- Observe minors while they work and correct any mistakes.
- Encourage minors to let you know if they don’t understand the directions or if they have a problem.
- Emphasize the need to supervise minors to frontline supervisors who oversee them and make sure the supervisors themselves are setting a good example.
Intern Protections
Summer internships can benefit both employers and students — providing students with valuable experience and knowledge for their future profession, and employers with mentoring opportunities for current employees and future job candidates. Employers should use caution, however, when bringing on “unpaid” interns and consider consulting with legal counsel before doing so.
Most interns are considered employees in the eyes of the law, which means employers must comply with wage and hour laws, including paying them at least minimum wage. Both federal and state law prohibit employers from using unpaid interns as unpaid employees.
Unpaid internships are allowed, however, under some circumstances. To be a valid unpaid internship, the student must gain the most benefit from the arrangement — or be the “primary beneficiary.” Federal law, which is followed by California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), uses a multi-factor test to determine which party is the primary beneficiary, examining the extent to which:
- The intern and the employer clearly understand that no compensation is expected. Any promise of compensation, express or implied, suggests that the intern is an employee — and vice versa.
- The internship provides training similar to that given in an educational environment, including the clinical and other hands-on training provided by educational institutions.
- The internship is tied to the intern’s formal education program by integrated coursework or the receipt of academic credit.
- The internship accommodates the intern’s academic commitments by corresponding to the academic calendar.
- The internship’s duration is limited to the period in which the internship provides the intern with beneficial learning.
- The intern’s work complements, rather than displaces, the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits to the intern.
- The intern and the employer understand that the internship is conducted without entitlement to a paid job at the internship’s conclusion.
A good rule of thumb: If you are hiring an intern for your benefit and not for the student’s educational purpose, you should pay them at least the minimum wage — and when in doubt, consult with legal counsel.
California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) also protects interns and volunteers from harassment and discrimination.
Employers looking to hire minors and interns this summer should review their practices to ensure they are following all applicable rules and regulations. if they have specific questions about hiring minors or interns for their organization, they should consult with legal counsel.
James W. Ward, J.D., Employment Law Subject Matter Expert/Legal Writer and Editor, CalChamber
CalChamber members can read more about Interns in the HR Library. Not a member yet? See how CalChamber can help you.
