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MN · agricultural-work rules for minors

Minnesota 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. Minnesota layers state-specific rules on top of that framework — whichever is stricter binds the employer (FLSA § 218(a)). This page covers the Minnesota ag-work floor: minimum ages on and off the family farm, hazardous-occupation cutoffs, school-hours rules, the parental-farm exemption as Minnesota treats it, and the exact state-code citation.

Quick facts

Min age off-parent farm
12+
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
Minnesota Statutes Chapter 181A (Employment of Minors)
Last verified

Minnesota vs the federal FLSA floor

Each row compares Minnesota'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)).

Minnesota agricultural-work rules compared to the federal FLSA floor.
DimensionFederal floorMinnesotaDelta
Min age off parent farm12 with parental consent / 14 without12+Matches 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 Minnesota actually regulates farm work

Minnesota carves agricultural work out of the general under-16 hour cap and age provision of § 181A.04: per § 181A.07 subdivision 1, "minors employed in corn detasseling operations and other agricultural operations, with the permission of their parents or guardian, shall be exempt from the provisions of section 181A.04, subdivision 4" (the under-16 weekly cap of 40 hours / daily cap of 8 hours). The same subdivision drops the minimum age from 14 to 12 for ag work with parental consent. Section 181A.11 explicitly defers to the federal floor: "Nothing in sections 181A.01 to 181A.12 shall prohibit a person from employing a child in any agricultural pursuit permitted under the United States Code, title 29, section 213(c)(2)." The federal parent-owned farm exemption applies. 16+ remains the minimum for federal Ag HO-1 through Ag HO-11. Note: for migratory or off-parent-farm ag work without explicit parental consent, the general § 181A.04 minimum age of 14 applies.

Citation

Minn. Stat. §§ 181A.07 subd. 1 (agricultural exemption from age and hour provisions), 181A.11 (federal-deference provision)

Where to verify Minnesota'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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