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MA · agricultural-work rules for minors

Massachusetts agricultural work rules for minors

Federal FLSA § 213(c) lets minors work in agriculture at younger ages than in other industries, with no federal hour cap outside school hours. Massachusetts layers state-specific rules on top of that framework — whichever is stricter binds the employer (FLSA § 218(a)). This page covers the Massachusetts ag-work floor: minimum ages on and off the family farm, hazardous-occupation cutoffs, school-hours rules, the parental-farm exemption as Massachusetts treats it, and the exact state-code citation.

Quick facts

Min age off-parent farm
14+
Min age for ag-hazardous work
16+
Parent-owned farm exemption
Mirrors federal § 213(c)
State daily / weekly hour cap
None (FLSA floor)
State statute
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 149 §§ 56-104
Last verified

Massachusetts vs the federal FLSA floor

Each row compares Massachusetts's rule to the federal floor under 29 USC § 213(c) and 29 CFR §§ 570.70 – 570.72. When the state is stricter, the state rule binds the employer; when the state is looser or silent, the federal floor still applies (§ 218(a)).

Massachusetts agricultural-work rules compared to the federal FLSA floor.
DimensionFederal floorMassachusettsDelta
Min age off parent farm12 with parental consent / 14 without14+Stricter than FLSA
Min age for Ag HO work16+ (Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11)16+Matches FLSA
Parent-owned farm exemptionNo min age; preempts Ag HOsMirrors federalMatches FLSA
Daily / weekly hour capNo cap outside school hoursNo state capMatches FLSA

How Massachusetts actually regulates farm work

Massachusetts General Laws c. 149 § 1 excludes "farm laborer including all practices connected with agriculture, the tillage of the soil, the preparation and marketing of crops and the construction and maintenance of farm property and equipment, customarily performed by a farmer on a farm" from the definition of "employment." Because Chapter 149's general minor-employment provisions (work-permit, hour caps, night-work restrictions) only apply to "employment," they do NOT apply to farm work — with one important exception: the § 1 carve-out preserves the under-17 prohibition on structural painting or outside-of-structure work above 15 feet above ground level. M.G.L. c. 149 § 62A explicitly authorizes 14-year-olds to operate small hand tools or tractors on a farm if they have completed a vocational-agriculture training program — mirroring the federal student-learner certificate carve-out under 29 CFR § 570.72(b). Under-16 minors remain prohibited from operating picker machines, hazardous electrical machinery, and adjustments/cleaning of hazardous belts and gearing (MGL c. 149 §§ 60-61), and these prohibitions carry through to ag work. Federal FLSA § 213(c) and federal Ag HO-1 through Ag HO-11 govern otherwise: 14+ off-family-farm outside school hours, parent-owned-farm exemption, 16+ for federal Ag HOs.

Citation

M.G.L. c. 149 § 1 (definition of "employment" excludes farm labor); M.G.L. c. 149 §§ 56-105 (work by children); M.G.L. c. 149 § 62A (vocational-agriculture student carve-out); 454 CMR 27 (Department of Labor Standards regulations)

Where to verify Massachusetts's ag-work enforcement

Ag-work rulemaking is an active area at both the US DOL Wage & Hour Division and state labor agencies. Before relying on these rules for hiring, scheduling, or harvest-season planning, confirm with the primary sources below.

Other states with distinctive ag-work rules

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