Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act 1996

Additional provisions in relation to employment of children.

4

4.(1) An employer shall not employ any child on any work between 8 p.m. on any one day and 8 a.m. on the following day.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), an employer shall ensure that an employee who is a child receives a minimum rest period of 14 consecutive hours in each period of 24 hours.

(3) The minimum consecutive hours of rest in each period of 24 hours specified in subsection (2) may be interrupted by an employer in the case of a child employed on activities that do not extend beyond 2 hours in each day or are separated, exclusive of breaks, over the day, provided that, in each period of 24 hours, the child receives a minimum rest period of 14 hours.

(4) An employer shall ensure that an employee who is a child receives, in any period of 7 days, a minimum rest period of 2 days which shall as far as is practicable be consecutive.

(5) The minimum period of rest during each period of 7 days specified in subsection (4) may be interrupted by an employer in the case of a child employed on activities that do not extend beyond 2 hours in each day or are separated, exclusive of breaks, over the day, provided that, in each period of 7 days, the cumulative rest period is 2 days.

(6) The Minister may, by regulations, reduce the minimum period of rest specified in subsection (4) to 36 consecutive hours in respect of any class of employees or class of work where in the opinion of the Minister this is justified for technical or organisational reasons.

(7) Whenever the Minister makes regulations under subsection (6), the Minister may provide in such regulations such conditions as the Minister sees fit.

(8) An employer shall not permit a child employed by him or her to do for him or her any work for any period exceeding 4 hours without a break of at least 30 consecutive minutes.

(9) A child shall not be entitled to be paid in respect of the break specified in subsection (8).

(10) An employer who contravenes subsection (1), (2), (4) or (8) shall be guilty of an offence.