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My child is an Apprentice, can they be furloughed?

9 March 2021
CLC Edit
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Yes, apprentices can be furloughed in the same way as other employees and your child can also continue to train whilst on furlough.

Their employer must pay them at least the Apprenticeship Minimum Wage/National Living Wage/National Minimum Wage for all the time they have spent training. This means that for time spent training your child’s employer must cover any shortfall between the amount they can claim for your child’s wages through the furlough scheme and their appropriate minimum wage.

How many hours can a 15/16 year old work whilst in school?

20 May 2020
clcadmin
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Children and young people that are employed under the compulsory school leaving age are called child workers.

During school holidays they are not allowed to work more than 7 hours per day, up to a maximum of 37 hours per week.

On a Saturday during term time they can work for up to 7 hours.

If they work for 4 hours continuously Monday-Saturday, they are entitled to a one hour break.

Your employer must notify the Education Authority that they have employed you. The Education Authority will then be responsible for ensuring your employer treats you properly.

How many breaks are children under 15 entitled to?

20 May 2020
clcadmin
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Children under 15 are entitled to a one hour break after three hours of continuous work Monday-Friday, and after four hours on a Saturday.

How many hours can children under 15 work?

20 May 2020
clcadmin
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Children and young people that are employed under the compulsory school leaving age are called child workers.

During term time child workers under the age of fifteen are allowed to work up to 2 hours on weekdays and Sundays, and up to 5 hours on a Saturday.

During school holidays child workers under the age of fifteen are allowed to work up to 5 hours per day, Monday-Saturday, and up to 2 hours on a Sunday. They can work up to a maximum of 27 hours per week.

What is the minimum age of employment?

20 May 2020
clcadmin
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It is illegal to employ anyone under the age of thirteen. If a young person is between the age of 13 and the official school leaving age (i.e. upon completion of Year 12) there are certain restrictions on the amount and type of work they can do:

  • It is an offence for anyone to employ you before 7am and after 7pm.
  • It is an offence to employ you to do work for more than one hour before you start school or before the end of the school day on any day when you should be at school.
  • You can only work for a maximum of two hours on any school day.
  • You can only work for a maximum of twelve hours per week during term time.
  • They can only work for a maximum of two hours on Sundays.
  • It is an offence to employ you in any occupation likely to be harmful to your health or education. It is up to your employer or potential employer to assess and manage these risks.

They can only work in the following types of jobs:

  • Delivery of newspapers, milk, groceries, flowers etc
  • Office work except in a place that sells alcohol or is licensed for betting or gambling
  • Hotel or catering work except in the kitchen or any part of the premises where alcohol is sold
  • Shop assistant except in a place that sells alcohol or is licensed for betting or gambling
  • Domestic work
  • Light agricultural work for their parents

The young person must have their parents/guardians’ consent before they start a job.

There is currently no minimum wage set for children under the age of sixteen. There is however a minimum wage for 16 and 17 year olds.