North Carolina Adds Youth Employment Laws and Labor Law Poster Update

Youth employment has been getting lots of attention in North Carolina.    

Two bills affecting youth employment were passed by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2009, and new youth employment information has been added to the North Carolina Labor Law Poster.    

House Bill 23, which went into effect Dec. 1, 2009, increases civil penalties for child labor violations.   The previous penalty was up to $250 per violation.   The new penalty under this law increases the maximum for first violations to $500 and adds penalties for subsequent violations of up to $1000.  

The other youth employment law passed in 2009 requires that the North Carolina Department of Labor give a report to the General Assembly on youth employment enforcement activities, due by Feb. 1 each year.

The North Carolina Department of Labor recently expanded the youth employment information in the Wage and Hour section of the North Carolina Workplace Laws Poster.   The previous poster simply stated that youths are not permitted to work in hazardous, detrimental or prohibited jobs.   The latest version of the employment poster explains that state and federal labor laws protect youth workers and gives several examples of dangerous jobs that are prohibited.  

The complete list of nine occupations declared to be detrimental to the health and well being of youths under 18 years of age can be found in the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act.    

These include welding; processes using powdered quartz or other silicates; work involving exposure to lead; work involving exposure to benzene; certain occupations in canneries, seafood or poultry processing establishments; work which has a risk of falling 10 feet or more; work as an electrician or helper; certain work in confined spaces; and certain occupations which require the use of a respirator.  

If you need to update your North Carolina labor law poster or you would like to order a 1-Year Compliance Protection Plan for worry-free compliance, go to the Poster Compliance Center website at postercompliance.com or call 1-800-322-3636.