Child Labor Laws
Information on Child Labor Laws
In General...
Child Labor Laws protect children from entering the workforce, and prevent them from getting injured on job sites.
In Georgia...
The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) Child Labor section administers and monitors the guidelines and restrictions for the employment of youth who have not yet reached their 18th birthday and performs the following functions:
- Reviews all issued Employment Certificates, commonly called Work Permits, to ensure job duties do not appear to be in violation of the law and that the form has been properly completed;
- Conducts inspections of possible law violations;
- Issues Certificates of Consent for minors in entertainment; and
- Makes child labor presentations to schools, employers, and other interested parties.
In Alabama...
Employers who wish to employ person under 18 years of age must obtain the appropriate Child Labor Certificate(s) for each location where persons under 18 years of age are employed. A Class I Child Labor Certificate is required for the employment of 14 and 15 year old minors. A Class II Child Labor Certificate is required for the employment of 16 and 17 year old minors.
In China...
Eighteen is the age of majority in China. Under the Minors Protection Law, “minors” are defined as citizens less than eighteen years old. The civil law of China provides that people above eighteen years old and those from sixteen to eighteen who make a living on their own have full civil conduct capacity. People aged from ten to eighteen have limited capacity of civil conduct, and may only engage in civil activities appropriate to the age range and intellect. People under ten years old have no civil conduct capacity. Unless otherwise indicated, “children” or "minors" hereinafter refers to people under the age of eighteen.
In Canada...
The Federal Government allows for the employment of children under the age of 17 with the provision that work be “unlikely” to endanger health or safety. Children are not permitted to work between the hours of 11:00 pm to 6:00 am. The vast majority of legislation over employment standards rests with the provinces. Federal employment standards cover approximately ten percent of employees, including children. Employment of children in federally-regulated industries would require permission from a federal Labour Standards Officer.