Sec. 31-23. Employment of minors prohibited in certain occupations. Exceptions.
Sec. 31-23. Employment of minors prohibited in certain occupations. Exceptions. (a) No minor under sixteen years of age shall be employed or permitted to work
in any manufacturing, mechanical, mercantile or theatrical industry, restaurant or public
dining room, or in any bowling alley, shoe-shining establishment or barber shop, provided the Labor Commissioner may authorize such employment of any minor between
the ages of fourteen and sixteen who is enrolled in (1) a public school in a work-study
program as defined and approved by the Commissioner of Education and the Labor
Commissioner or in a program established pursuant to section 10-20a, or (2) a summer
work-recreation program sponsored by a town, city or borough or by a human resources
development agency which has been approved by the Labor Commissioner, or both,
and provided the prohibitions of this section shall not apply to any minor over the age
of fourteen who is under vocational probation pursuant to an order of the Superior Court
as provided in section 46b-140 or to any minor over the age of fourteen who has been
placed on vocational parole by the Commissioner of Children and Families.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, a minor
who has reached the age of fourteen may be employed or permitted to work as a caddie
or in a pro shop at any municipal or private golf course, and a minor who has reached
the age of fifteen may be employed or permitted to work in any mercantile establishment,
as a bagger, cashier or stock clerk, provided such employment is (A) limited to periods
of school vacation during which school is not in session for five consecutive days or
more except that such minor employed in a retail food store may work on any Saturday
during the year; (B) for not more than forty hours in any week; (C) for not more than
eight hours in any day; and (D) between the hours of seven o'clock in the morning and
seven o'clock in the evening, except that from July first to the first Monday in September
in any year, any such minor may be employed until nine o'clock in the evening. (2) (A)
Each person who employs a fourteen-year-old minor as a caddie or in a pro shop at any
municipal or private golf course pursuant to this section shall obtain a certificate stating
that such minor is fourteen years of age or older, as provided in section 10-193, and
(B) each person who employs a fifteen-year-old minor in any mercantile establishment
pursuant to this subsection shall obtain a certificate stating that such minor is fifteen
years of age or older, as provided in section 10-193. Such certificate shall be kept on
file at the place of employment and shall be available at all times during business hours
to the inspectors of the Labor Department. (3) The Labor Commissioner may adopt
regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, as the commissioner deems
necessary to implement the provisions of this subsection.
(c) No minor under the age of eighteen years shall be employed or permitted to
work in any occupation which has been or shall be pronounced hazardous to health by
the Department of Public Health or pronounced hazardous in other respects by the Labor
Department. This section shall not apply to the employment or enrollment of minors
sixteen years of age and over as apprentices in bona fide apprenticeship courses in
manufacturing or mechanical establishments, vocational schools or public schools, or
to the employment of such minors who have graduated from a public or private secondary
or vocational school, in any manufacturing or mechanical establishment or to the enrollment of such minors in a cooperative work-study program approved by the Commissioner of Education and the Labor Commissioner or in a program established pursuant
to section 10-20a. No provision of this section shall apply to agricultural employment,
domestic service, street trades or the distribution of newspapers. For purposes of this
subsection, the term "cooperative work-study program" means a program of vocational
education, approved by the Commissioner of Education and the Labor Commissioner,
for persons who, through a cooperative arrangement between the school and employers,
receive instruction, including required academic courses and related vocational instruction by alternation of study in school with a job in any occupational field, provided these
two experiences are planned and supervised by the school and employers so that each
contributes to the student's education and to his employability. Work periods and school
attendance may be on alternate half days, full days, weeks or other periods of time in
fulfilling the cooperative work-study program.
(d) Each person who employs a minor under the age of eighteen years shall obtain
a certificate stating the age of such minor as provided in section 10-193. Such certificates
shall be kept on file at the place of employment and shall be available at all times during
business hours to the inspectors of the Labor Department.
(1949 Rev., S. 7352; February, 1965, P.A. 186, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 203, S. 1; 498, S. 2; P.A. 73-49, S. 2, 3; P.A. 75-16;
75-282; P.A. 76-436, S. 617, 681; P.A. 77-614, S. 323, 610; P.A. 86-333, S. 26, 32; P.A. 87-195, S. 1; P.A. 88-360, S. 52,
53, 63; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-16, S. 85, 89; P.A. 93-91, S. 1, 2; 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 94-116, S. 27, 28; P.A. 95-257, S.
12, 21, 58; P.A. 97-38; 97-263, S. 10; P.A. 00-144, S. 3; P.A. 02-44, S. 1; P.A. 06-139, S. 4, 8; P.A. 08-108, S. 1.)
History: 1965 act authorized employment of minor between 14 and 16 years old who is enrolled in school in a work-study program in Subsec. (a); 1969 acts authorized employment of minors between 14 and 16 in summer work-recreation
programs and specified that prohibitions of section do not apply to minors over 14 years old who are under vocational
probation by order of juvenile court in Subsec. (a); P.A. 73-49 specified that provisions do not apply to minors over 14
years old who are placed on vocational probation by children and youth services commissioner in Subsec. (a); P.A. 75-16
defined "cooperative work-study program" in Subsec. (b) and specified that provisions do not apply to minors enrolled in
such programs approved by state board of education and labor commissioner; P.A. 75-282 specified in Subsec. (b) that
provisions do not apply to minors who have graduated from secondary or vocational schools who are employed in a
manufacturing or mechanical establishment; P.A. 76-436 replaced juvenile court with superior court in Subsec. (a), effective
July 1, 1978; P.A. 77-614 replaced department of health with department of health services, effective January 1, 1979;
P.A. 86-333 deleted reference to repealed Sec. 10-189 in Subsec. (c); P.A. 87-195 inserted new Subsec. (b) permitting
minors who are 15 years of age to work in any mercantile establishment as baggers, cashiers or stock clerks until September
30, 1992, with certain restrictions on the hours of work and relettered prior Subsecs. (b) to (d), inclusive, accordingly; P.A.
88-360 in Subsec. (b)(2) provided that the certificate be obtained pursuant to Sec. 10-193, i.e., from the superintendent of
schools, rather than from the state board of education and in Subsec. (d) deleted the provision specifying that the certificate
be obtained from the state board of education; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-16 amended Subsec. (b) by limiting employment of
minors 15 years of age to school vacations of five consecutive days or longer and deleting provision limiting employment
of such minors to not more than two consecutive days without a day off; P.A. 93-91 substituted commissioner and department of children and families for commissioner and department of children and youth services, effective July 1, 1993;
P.A. 93-381 replaced department of health services with department of public health and addiction services, effective July
1, 1993; P.A. 94-116 replaced references to "state board" with "commissioner" and added a provision allowing minors to
participate in the Connecticut career certificate program under Sec. 10-20a, effective July 1, 1994; P.A. 95-257 replaced
Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public
Health, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 97-38 amended Subsec. (b) to extend period a minor may work in any mercantile
establishment to September 30, 2002; P.A. 97-263 amended Subsec. (e) to increase amount of fine from $100 to $200;
P.A. 00-144 amended Subsec. (b) by adding provision permitting minor employed in a retail food store to work on any
Saturday; P.A. 02-44 amended Subsec. (b) to extend period during which a minor may work in a mercantile establishment
to September 30, 2007, and make technical changes; P.A. 06-139 amended Subsec. (b)(1) to permit employment of 14-year-old minor as caddie or in pro shop at municipal or private golf course, and added new Subsec. (b)(2)(A) requring
employer of 14-year-old minor as caddie or in pro shop to obtain certificate stating age of minor, designating existing
provisions as Subpara. (B), effective June 6, 2006, and made a technical change in Subsec. (a) and deleted former Subsec.
(e) re penalty for violation of section, effective January 1, 2007; P.A. 08-108 amended Subsec. (b)(1) by deleting "from
September 20, 2002, to September 30, 2007, inclusive" and replacing "shall be" with "is", effective June 2, 2008.
See Secs. 22-13 to 22-17, inclusive, re employment of minors in agriculture.
See Secs. 31-15a, 31-69a re penalties for violation of section.
See Sec. 46b-140(g) re employment of certain children for whom continued school attendance is deemed to be of
no benefit.
Child employed in violation of this section is not thereby precluded from compensation for injury otherwise compensable. 95 C. 164. Former statute cited. 111 C. 232. Violation of statute as actionable cause of death. 129 C. 439. Although
employed in violation of statute, plaintiff within workmen's compensation act. 131 C. 157.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 203 C. 34. Cited. 221 C. 465.
Subsec. (c):
Cited. 221 C. 465.
Subsec. (d):
Cited. 221 C. 465.