Contact the experienced employment law attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. today at (203) 221-3100 or JMaya@Mayalaw.com.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), is administered by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor.  The FLSA establishes standards for minimum wages, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor. These standards affect more than 130 million workers, both full‑time and part‑time, in the private and public sectors. (29 USC §201 et seq.; 29 CFR Parts 510 to 794).

The FLSA requires that most employees be paid at least the Federal minimum wage for all hours worked, and overtime pay at a rate of time and one-half the regular rate of pay for any time in excess of forty (40) hours in a particular workweek.  Along with these regulations, the FLSA provides many exemptions from the minimum wage and overtime rules, with one such exemption being for the seasonal amusement parks and recreational establishments.  It is common that these industries employ children (workers under the age of eighteen (18)), and therefore an employer must understand not only the overtime exemption, but their responsibilities for child labor and record keeping under the Act as well.

Any employer in the amusement park and/or recreational arena may employ employees over the age of eighteen (18).  Once an employee reaches the age of eighteen (18), the Federal child labor provisions under the FLSA no longer apply to their employment.

If an employee is sixteen (16) or seventeen (17) years of age, an employer may require employees to perform any nonhazardous duties.  The Secretary of Labor has declared Seventeen Hazardous Occupations Orders which restrict the types of jobs and/or industries in which an employee under the age of eighteen (18) may be employed.  The most common tasks which occur at amusement parks and recreation establishments which are prohibited by the Secretary of Labor’s Hazardous Occupations Orders are:

  • Operating or assisting to operate, clean, oil, set up, adjust or repair certain power-driven woodworking, metalworking, bakery or meat processing and paper machinery;
  • Driving or serving as an outside-helper on a motor vehicle on a public road;
  • Operating power-driven hoists such as elevators, cranes, derricks, and high-lift trucks;
  • Loading, operating or unloading power-driven balers and compactors used in the disposal of waste.

For employees aged fourteen (14) and fifteen (15), such employees may only be employed for certain periods of time.  The employment of this category of employee is limited to outside of school hours, or three (3) hours on a school day, including Fridays.  On a non-school day, the employee may only be required to work for eight (8) hours and a total of eighteen (18) hours in a week in which school meets.  If school does not meet during a particular week, the employees may only be required to work a total of forty (40) hours.  It is important to note also that no matter what the employee’s school schedule, an employee aged fourteen (14) or fifteen (15), may not be required to work before 7:00am, or after 7:00pm except from June 1st through Labor Day in which the evening limit for an employee is extended to 9:00pm.

Along with the time limitations placed on the work schedules of employees aged fourteen (14) and fifteen (15), employers further have an occupational limitation on such employees in which the Department of Labor forbids such employees from being assigned tasks involving:

  • The operation or tending to any power-driven machinery and hoists (except office machinery). This includes work involving most amusement park and recreation establishment rides and power-driven lawn mowers;
  • All baking and most cooking. The minors may perform cooking with electric and gas grills that do not involve open flames.  They may also cook with deep fryers that are equipped with, and utilize devices that automatically lower and raise the basket into the hot oil or grease.  They may not operate NEICO broilers, rapid broilers, pressure cookers or ovens;
  • The cleaning of cooking equipment and the filtering, transporting or disposing of hot oil and grease when such exceed one hundred (100) degrees Fahrenheit;
  • All work in construction, including demolition and repair;
  • All work involving the use of ladders or scaffolding;
  • All work in freezers, but may enter freezers equipped with safety latches, to retrieve items;
  • Employment as life guards if the employee is fourteen (14) years of age. Employees of fifteen (15) years of age may be employed as lifeguards at traditional swimming pools and water amusement parks.

Employers should understand their rights and responsibilities prior to their decision to employer minors under the age of eighteen (18) in the amusement park or recreational industry as the prospective minor employee may not be allowed to perform the exact duties that their employer may expect.  Even if such duties are allowable, employers must be aware of the time limitations on minor employees and should plan their scheduling and workforce accordingly.

If you are an employer and are seeking compliance with the FLSA, contact the experienced employment law attorneys today at 203-221-3100, or by email at JMaya@mayalaw.com. We have the experience and knowledge you need at this critical juncture. We serve clients in both New York and Connecticut including New Canaan, Bridgeport, White Plains, and Darien.

Source: dol.gov