MN · State teen labor law
Minnesota teen labor law — work hours, permits, and restricted jobs
Minnesota allows 14-15-year-olds to work until 9:00 PM (later than the federal 7:00 PM cap) and imposes no weekly hour limit on 16-17-year-olds. No state work permit is required. Minors under 18 may not work alone in a retail store between 8:00 PM and 6:00 AM.
Quick facts
School year vs summer hour caps
Minnesota applies similar caps year-round, with small calendar adjustments shown below. Each age band below shows both calendars side-by-side — a distinction federal summaries and most state-comparison tables skip.
Ages 14–15
School year
When school is in session
- Hrs/day (school day)
- 3 hr
- Hrs/day (Sat / Sun / holiday)
- 8 hr
- Max hours per week
- 18 hr
- Time window
- 07:00 – 21:00
Note: No work during school hours. Minnesota allows a 9:00 PM cutoff (federal cap is 7:00 PM).
Summer / school breaks
When school is out
- Max hours per day
- 8 hr
- Max hours per week
- 40 hr
- Time window
- 07:00 – 21:00
Note: Hours apply when school is not in session.
Ages 16–17
School year
When school is in session
- Max hours per day
- No state limit
- Max hours per week
- No state limit
- Time window
- 05:00 – 23:00
Note: No state weekly hour cap. 16-17-year-olds may not work after 11:00 PM on a night preceding a school day, nor before 5:00 AM on a school day, without written parental consent (which may extend to 11:30 PM and 4:30 AM).
Summer / school breaks
When school is out
- Max hours per day
- No state limit
- Max hours per week
- No state limit
- Time window
- No state limit
Note: Time-of-day restrictions lift on non-school nights; federal FLSA has no cap for this age group.
Work permit
Minnesota does not require a state-issued work permit for minors.
Minnesota does not require a state-issued work permit. Employers must keep proof of age on file. Minors under 16 working on school days must also provide an Age Certificate from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry on request — employers can request one online if they suspect a worker's age.
Jobs by age
Age-specific guides to common allowed jobs in Minnesota, with the federal hour caps and the state’s stricter rules built in.
Restricted occupations
All federal hazardous orders HO-1 through HO-17
Federal: 29 CFR Part 570
Operating power-driven meat-processing machines
Federal: HO-10
Roofing operations and work on or about a roof
Federal: HO-16
Door-to-door sales for minors under 16 without adult supervision
State: Minn. Stat. §181A.04
Working alone in a retail store between 8:00 PM and 6:00 AM (under 18)
State: Minn. Stat. §181A.04
See the full federal hazardous orders (HO-1 to HO-17) for plain-English summaries, or the Minnesota hazardous-orders deep-dive for the federal floor plus Minnesota-specific additions.
Breaks & meal periods
Minnesota applies one general meal-break rule to all employees, including minors. Federal law (the FLSA) mandates no break at any age, so this state rule is the binding one for teens too.
- Meal break
- 30 minutes
- Required after
- 6 consecutive hours
- Pay treatment
- Unpaid
- Paid rest break
- Required — in addition to the meal break
Unpaid when the teen is completely relieved of duty.
Paid rest break of at least 15 minutes (or enough time to use the nearest restroom, whichever is longer) within each 4 consecutive hours worked.
Minnesota strengthened its break laws through 2025 Special Session SF 17, effective January 1, 2026 — these are the current figures. An employee working 6 or more consecutive hours must get a meal break of at least 30 minutes (the prior law triggered only at 8 hours and required just "sufficient time"); the meal break may be unpaid. Within each 4 consecutive hours of work, the employer must allow a rest break of at least 15 minutes, or enough time to use the nearest restroom — whichever is longer; this short rest break is paid. These are general all-employee rules — Minnesota's Child Labor Standards Act (Chapter 181A) contains no separate break provision, so minors are covered by §§ 177.253-177.254.
See the federal breaks & meal-period reference for how the FLSA treats paid rest breaks vs unpaid meal periods, and why a mandatory teen break can only come from state law.
Statute: Minn. Stat. §§ 177.253, 177.254
Pay & minimum wage
Minnesota lets some teens, or inexperienced first-job and trainee workers, be paid below the standard state minimum wage. The structure below is stable, but the dollar amount changes almost every year — confirm the current figure with the Minnesota Department of Labor.
- How minors are paid
- Youth / training subminimum allowed
- State minimum wage
- Set by state law
- Below-minimum youth rate
- Permitted
- Subminimum structure
- A 90-day training wage lets an employer pay a worker under 20 a lower, separately-set minimum during the first 90 consecutive days of employment — no certificate required. (The older separate under-18 youth wage and the small-employer rate were eliminated in 2025, leaving one standard minimum plus this 90-day under-20 rate.)
Minnesota keeps a certificate-free 90-day training wage for workers under 20, which a first-job teen squarely hits. It is a distinct lower minimum (indexed for inflation like the standard rate), not a fixed percentage; after 90 days, or once the worker turns 20, the full state minimum applies.
Rates change yearly. This page describes the legal structure, not the current dollar amount. State and federal minimum wages are adjusted regularly — always verify the live figure with your state Department of Labor or the U.S. DOL before relying on it.
See the federal youth minimum wage reference for the $4.25 90-day rule, student / learner certificates, the tipped cash wage, and how a higher state minimum wins.
Statute: Minn. Stat. § 177.24, subd. 1
Agricultural work carve-out
Minnesota largely mirrors the federal agricultural carve-out under FLSA § 213(c)(1). The rules below confirm what applies for farm work in this state.
Mirrors federal Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11.
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.
See the federal agricultural-work reference for the FLSA § 213(c) baseline, parental-exemption rules, and the Ag HO-1 to Ag HO-11 hazardous list.
Statute: Minn. Stat. §§ 181A.07 subd. 1 (agricultural exemption from age and hour provisions), 181A.11 (federal-deference provision)
Family-business carve-out
Minnesota narrows the federal parent-owned-business carve-out — the rules below apply when a minor works for a parent-owned non-agricultural business in this state.
Federal hazardous orders always apply — the parent-owned-business carve-out never reaches mining, manufacturing, or HO-listed work.
Minnesota does not have a state work-permit requirement for general minor employment (proof of age is sufficient under § 181A.06), so the practical impact of the family-business question is on hour caps and hazardous-occupations restrictions. Chapter 181A's § 181A.04 under-16 hour caps (3 hrs/school day, 8 hrs/non-school day, 40 hrs/week, no work between 9 PM-7 AM during school year) apply to minors working in parent-owned non-agricultural businesses — Minnesota's parental-consent carve-outs in § 181A.07 are specific to agricultural operations and do not extend to non-ag commercial parent-owned businesses. The federal § 213(c)(1)(C) parent-owned-business exemption does NOT preempt the state's more-protective hour caps under § 218(a). Federal hazardous orders HO-1 through HO-17 always apply, and Minnesota's hazardous-occupations rules at § 181A.05 carry through regardless of who employs the minor.
See the federal family-business reference for the FLSA § 213(c)(1)(C) baseline, ownership-structure rules, and the hazardous-occupations overlay that always applies.
Statute: Minn. Stat. §§ 181A.04 (hour caps), 181A.07 (ag-specific exemptions), 181A.06 (proof of age)
Entertainment-industry work
Minnesota does not separately regulate child performers (film, TV, theater, modeling). The general age-band hour caps and work-permit rules above apply to entertainment-industry work for minors. Federal FLSA carves out actors and performers from the general 14-year minimum age (29 CFR § 570.122), but neither federal nor Minnesota law imposes a blocked-trust requirement on a child performer’s earnings.
States with dedicated child-performer frameworks (Coogan-style trust accounts, on-set studio teachers, performer-specific permits) include California, New York, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Illinois.
Where these rules come from
State code: Minnesota Statutes Chapter 181A (Employment of Minors)
US DOL Wage & Hour Division: https://www.dli.mn.gov/business/employment-practices/minnesota-child-labor-standards
Last verified:
Informational only — verify with the Minnesota Department of Labor before hiring or starting work.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a 14-year-old work in Minnesota?
- Yes — under Minnesota law a 14-year-old can work up to 3 hours per school day, up to 18 hours per week, between 07:00 and 21:00.
- How many hours can a 15-year-old work during school in Minnesota?
- When school is in session, Minnesota allows a 15-year-old to work up to 3 hours per school day, up to 18 hours per week, between 07:00 and 21:00. During summer or school breaks the cap rises to up to 8 hours per school day, up to 40 hours per week, between 07:00 and 21:00.
- Does Minnesota require a work permit for minors?
- Minnesota does not require a state-issued work permit for minors. Employers still must follow federal FLSA rules on hour caps and restricted occupations.
- Does a minor get a meal break in Minnesota?
- Yes. Minnesota requires a 30-minute unpaid meal break once a worker reaches 6 consecutive hours; the rule applies to all employees, including minors. Minnesota also requires a separate paid rest break on top of the meal break. Federal law sets no break requirement at any age, so the state rule is the binding one. See the breaks section on this page for the exact age scope and the statute.
- Can a teen be paid less than minimum wage in Minnesota?
- Sometimes. Minnesota lets some teens, or inexperienced first-job and trainee workers, be paid below the standard state minimum wage without a special certificate. A 90-day training wage lets an employer pay a worker under 20 a lower, separately-set minimum during the first 90 consecutive days of employment — no certificate required. (The older separate under-18 youth wage and the small-employer rate were eliminated in 2025, leaving one standard minimum plus this 90-day under-20 rate.) Minimum-wage dollar amounts change almost every year, so confirm the current figure with the Minnesota Department of Labor. See the Pay and minimum wage section on this page.
- What jobs can a minor not do in Minnesota?
- Minnesota prohibits minors from a number of hazardous occupations, including: all federal hazardous orders ho-1 through ho-17; operating power-driven meat-processing machines; roofing operations and work on or about a roof. The full list of federal hazardous orders (HO-1 through HO-17) also applies. See the Minnesota Statutes Chapter 181A (Employment of Minors) citation on this page for the statutory source.