Many young people are employed in part time work when they are at school or further/higher education which is great. Part time work allows you to earn some extra money and gain valuable employment experience.
However, it is also important to be aware of the relevant laws that apply to young people in part time work and what your rights at work are. So I’ve been created this handy guide that explains how employment laws surrounding pay and hours affect young people.
Pay
If you are aged 16 or over you are entitled to be paid the National Minimum Wage. The rates typically change every year and can be viewed on the UK Government website.
In the event that your employer is not paying you the correct wages you should, in the first instance, speak to your manager or contact the organisation’s payroll team if they have one. It is possible that a mistake has been made which can easily be resolved.
Tips
For those of you who work in the hospitality sector, you may be familiar with the practice of customers leaving tips as a thank you for good service. When customers leave a tip they may do so by handing cash directly to their server or by including this as part of the bill (also known as a service charge or gratuity).
Some places allow staff to keep any cash tips given to them. However, some places may have a policy where all cash tips are pooled and then split equally amongst all staff. This is called a Tronc and the person who takes charge of this should not be part of management.
However, it is important to remember that tips cannot be included as part of your minimum wage regardless of how they are received and distributed. These should be classed as additional income. You do need to pay tax on tips though this will be calculated by your employer.
Keeping track of your pay
If you are paid an hourly rate it is a good idea to keep a record of the hours you work and how much you should receive. You can read more about this in our guide to managing money.
Hours
Employees under the age go 18 have different rights due to their age.
If you are aged 16 or 17 you should not work any more than 40 hours a week and 8 hours a day. You must also have at least 2 days off per week at the same time (one after the other). If your working day is longer than 4 and a half hours you must also be given a minimum 30 minute break. You should also have at least 12 hours rest in a 24 hour period where you work.
Under 16
Children under age 16 need a work permit in order to work part time. These can be applied for through the local authority.
There are restrictions on the sort of work that under 16s can do. For example, under 16s cannot carry out any work that disrupts their education or would be unsafe for them to do. Each local authority has its own rules about how many hours an under 16 year old can work however the person cannot work when they are supposed to be in school.
Working at night
It is illegal for anyone under age 18 to work between the hours of midnight and 4AM. They should also not work after 10PM or before 7AM however there are some circumstances where this may be permitted. These are:
If they are employed in one of the following areas:
- Retail
- Agriculture
- Hospitals or care homes
- Delivery of newspapers/post
- Hospitality such as restaurants, pubs or hotels
- Catering
- Bakeries
- Advertising
And only if:
- No other employees aged over 18 are available to carry out the work
- It is extremely busy or if they are needed to keep things running
- The employee’s education or training will not be affected
- They will be supervised by at least one other employee aged 18 or over
- If the employee needs to work during their usual rest breaks they should be given enough time to rest at another time
