The law governs how and where young people can be employed, whether they are being paid or not.  It applies to people under 16 years old and it's about protecting the welfare of children and young people, and is not intended to make working life difficult for young people or their employers. Work has been defined in Article 48 of the Children (Jersey) Law 2002 as "a person who assists in a trade or occupation carried out for profit shall be regarded as being employed notwithstanding the person receives no reward for his or her labour". The law does not intend to restrict jobs such as babysitting or doing odd jobs for pocket money.  It does not apply to young people on work experience programmes organised through schools.

You must not employ anyone under 13 years old and must not employ young people in any way that falls outside the list of restrictions for young workers including the hours of employment and work breaks as well as making sure that you comply with Health and Safety Law, for example by providing correct protective equipment and adequate training.

Hours worked by a young person are cumulative; this means that you must add together the number of hours a young person works for you and for any other employer to get the total number of hours they are working. It is recognised that gaining this information may not always be straightforward, but you should be able to show you have made reasonable efforts to do so. You must provide the required breaks and holidays and make reasonable effort to ensure that the young person is not working too many cumulative hours.

If you have any questions or concerns about the employment of a young person, please call Children's Services.