3.—(1) Subject to this section and section 9, an employer shall not employ a child to do work.

(2) The Minister may, by licence, authorise in individual cases, the employment of a child in cultural, artistic, sports or advertising activities which are not likely to be harmful to the safety, health or development of the child and which are not likely to interfere with the child’s attendance at school, vocational guidance or training programmes or capacity to benefit from the instruction received.

(3) The Minister may, by regulations, authorise the employment of children over the age of 13 years in cultural, artistic, sports or advertising activities which are not harmful to the safety, health or development of children and which are not likely to interfere with their attendance at school, vocational guidance or training programmes or capacity to benefit from the instruction received.

(4) An employer may employ a child who is over the age of 14 years to do light work during any period outside the school term:

Provided that—

(a) the hours of work do not exceed 7 hours in any day or 35 hours in any week,

(b) the work is not harmful to the safety, health and development of the child, and

(c) during the period of the summer holidays, the child does not do any work for a period of at least 21 days.

(5) An employer may employ a child who is over the age of 15 years to do light work during school term time, provided that the hours of work do not exceed 8 hours in any week.

(6) Subject to subsection (7), an employer may employ a child who is over the age of 14 years and who is a full-time student at an institute of secondary education pursuant to any arrangements made or approved of by the Minister for Education as part of a programme of work experience or educational programme:

Provided that the hours of work do not exceed 8 hours in any day or 40 hours in any week.

(7) The Minister may, after consultation with the Minister for Education and such other interested parties as the Minister sees fit, by regulations, make exemptions from subsection (6) in relation to the hours of work of children participating in a work experience or training programme approved by the Minister for Education under subsection (6).

(8) An employer may employ a child over the age of 15 years to participate in a training or work experience programme pursuant to arrangements made or approved of by the Minister or FÁS — the Employment and Training Authority, provided that the hours of work do not exceed 8 hours in any day or 40 hours in any week.

(9) Whenever the Minister grants a licence under subsection (2) or makes regulations under subsection (3) or (7), the Minister may attach to such licence or provide in such regulations such conditions as the Minister sees fit.

(10) An employer may retain in his or her employment any child of 15 years of age who was in his or her employment immediately before the commencement of this section:

Provided that the hours of work do not exceed 7 hours in any day or 35 hours in any week.

(11) An employer who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence.