No minor may be employed without a work permit issued by the school district in which the minor resides. For minors residing outside of Pennsylvania, a work permit may be obtained from the school district in which the employer is located.

Collection of the work permit is required by law while the minor is under 18, regardless of matriculation. It is the hiring manager's responsibility to ensure that all minors have a valid work permit prior to the first day of employment.

In addition to the work permit, if the minor is under the age of 16, a written statement by the minor's parents or legal guardian acknowledging the hours and duties of employment and granting permission for the minor to work under such conditions is also required. LLC-75 Form Parental Acknowledgement of Minor's Duties and Hours of Employment [pdf] can be found at the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry website. This form will be sent by the Office of Human Resources in the Onboarding Welcome email (at least one week prior to start) and collected by the HR specialist.

Please note that no minor under the age of 16 may commence employment without a work permit and an executed Parental Acknowledgement Form (LLC-75 Form). The hiring manager must provide a copy of the work permit to their HR recruiter so the offer letter can be processed. Please refer to the HR Checklist for Hiring Minors [pdf] for more information on the documentation requirements for hiring minors.

Minors employed as performers must also obtain an entertainment permit [pdf] from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor.

All written offers of employment will be administered through the Office of Human Resources. The Office of Human Resources is responsible for ensuring that all offers contain appropriate language regarding Work Permit/Parental Acknowledgement Form requirements and Child Protection clearance obligations.

Language to include in offers:

"Work Permit/Parental Acknowledgement Form: As you are a minor, please note that before you can start working with us, you are required to submit the following documents:

• Work Permit: This permit must be obtained from your school or local government office.
• Parental Acknowledgement Agreement: This agreement must be signed by your parent or legal guardian, acknowledging their consent for you to work with us.

Child Protective Services Certifications: This offer is contingent on your obtaining background certifications required for interacting with minors under the Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law (or similar laws in the applicable jurisdiction). You will be contacted separately to submit or to apply for your background certifications."

The Pennsylvania Child Labor Law requires employers to provide written notice to the school district official who issued the minor's work permit within five days of the minor starting employment; within five days of any change in employment duties; and within five days of termination of employment.

Within five days of a minor's start date, the hiring department must send a written notice to the issuing school district office. This notice must include the minor's age, work permit number, normal duties and hours of employment.

Within five days of a minor's final day of employment, the hiring department must notify the issuing officer that the minor is no longer employed at the university.

CMU's Office of Human Resources has developed the following notification templates for hiring department use:

• CMU Notification Letter to School District — Employment of Minor Employee [docx] 
• CMU Notification Letter to School District — Termination of Employment of Minor Employee [docx]

The hiring department must retain a copy of the work permit, the original verified permission statement (Form LLC-75) and the notification letters to the issuing school district. Copies of these documents must also be forwarded to the HR business partner or HR generalist prior to the minor's first day of employment.

*Note: Although minors aged 16–17 are permitted to work up to a maximum 48 hours/week, the minor may refuse to work beyond 44 hours/week.

Minors aged 16–17 who have graduated from high school or who are exempt from compulsory attendance under the Public School Code are not subject to the restrictions on hours of employment or work time. However, these minors are still subject to requirements relating to work permits and hazardous employment.

Child Labor Laws prohibit minors from being employed in jobs that entail hazardous activity, which may include:

• machinery other than typical office equipment
• contact with alcoholic beverages
• driving
• strenuous physical activity

Your HR business partner can evaluate a position description to determine compliance with child labor standards.

The state and federal minimum wage and overtime requirements also apply to minors. Please note that the Pennsylvania minimum wage is $7.25 as of July 2009. For work locations not in Pennsylvania, use the federal minimum wage or state/local minimum wage, whichever is higher. Overtime pay at a rate of not less than one and one-half times their regular rates of pay is required after 40 hours of work in a work week.

Except as described below, all minors must be paid at least a minimum wage, and minors may not work as unpaid interns or volunteers.

CMU prohibits the use of unpaid interns under the age of 16 and discourages the use of unpaid interns under the age of 18. However, minors aged 16–17 may work as unpaid interns if all of the following requirements are satisfied:

• The internship is registered and approved via the Collaborating Visitors process (which includes HR review for compliance with the university's ;guidance for unpaid internships);
• The internship has been approved by Child Protection Operations within the Office of Human Resources, and all faculty and staff members responsible for the intern have obtained appropriate Child Protection Clearances for working with minors;
• The unpaid intern satisfies all of the requirements described above relating to work permits, parental authorization, hours of work and restrictions on hazardous employment.

The minimum age for employment is 14 years for non-agricultural jobs. There are some exceptions that might allow younger employment: newspaper delivery; performing in radio, television, movie, or theatrical productions; and work for parents in a solely owned, non-farm business (excepting manufacturing or hazardous jobs).