Can You Work at 14 in NJ? Jobs, Hours, and Working Papers

Yes, you can work at 14 in NJ, but only in occupations the state allows, only with an employment certificate (working papers) approved before your first shift, and only within tight hour limits that loosen a bit in summer. Pay follows the regular state minimum wage; New Jersey does not set a lower rate for minors.

Jobs a 14-Year-Old Can Take

The New Jersey Department of Labor keeps a list of occupations open to 14-year-olds, and it is broader than most families expect. Common starting points include clerical and office work, retail sales, restaurant roles like hosting or bussing, hotel work, and delivery jobs that don’t involve a motor vehicle. Domestic work such as babysitting or cleaning is on the list, along with camp counselor, library attendant, caddie, lifeguard, and entertainment work like singing, modeling, or theatrical performances.¹

One detail catches families off guard. Working as a cashier or bagger at a supermarket or retail store’s cash-register conveyor belt requires you to be at least 15. A 14-year-old can still work in those stores doing other tasks, like stocking shelves, but not run the register or bag at the belt.²

Jobs That Are Off-Limits

Under New Jersey law, no one under 16 may work in, around, or in connection with any power-driven machinery.² A 14-year-old at a landscaping company can rake leaves or pull weeds, but cannot touch a power mower or leaf blower.

Federal rules add more. Fourteen- and 15-year-olds cannot work in manufacturing, processing, or mining occupations at all, and cannot be in workrooms where those activities happen. Meat processing areas, including anywhere a power-driven meat slicer is used, are off-limits too.³ The federal hazardous occupation orders also ban all workers under 18 from tasks involving explosives, coal mining, forestry and logging, power-driven bakery machines, and industrial balers or compactors, among others.⁴

A couple of restrictions are easy to miss. Fourteen- and 15-year-olds may not work from ladders, scaffolds, or their substitutes, and cannot be exposed to radioactive substances or ionizing radiation.⁴ Where state and federal rules overlap, the stricter one applies.

Hours You Can Work During the School Year

During the school year, a 14-year-old can work no more than 3 hours on a school day. The weekly cap in school weeks is 18 hours.⁵ Shifts must fall between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. while school is in session.⁶

Hours You Can Work in Summer

Starting on the last day of the minor’s school year through Labor Day, 14- and 15-year-olds may work up to 40 hours per week, and the evening cutoff moves from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.⁵ Federal law caps daily hours at 8 during non-school periods.⁶

Any minor under 18 who works more than six continuous hours has to get at least a 30-minute meal break.⁷

What You’ll Be Paid

New Jersey does not set a lower minimum wage for minors. As of January 1, 2026, the state minimum wage for most employees is $15.92 per hour, and that rate applies to a 14-year-old the same way it applies to an adult. Seasonal and small employers pay $15.23 per hour, and agricultural workers on an hourly or piece-rate wage earn at least $14.20 per hour.⁸

Tipped jobs work differently. The employer’s cash wage must be at least $6.05 per hour, with a maximum tip credit of $9.87 covering the rest of the full minimum.⁸ Going forward, the state’s minimum wage adjusts each year with the Consumer Price Index.

How to Get Working Papers

No minor under 18 may start a job in New Jersey until an employment certificate is approved and the employer has it on file.⁹ The whole process runs through myworkingpapers.nj.gov. Before starting, gather three things:

Your employer’s 8-digit code. The business must register in the system first; if they haven’t, the portal lets you enter their email so the state can prompt them.¹⁰
Your Social Security Number, used to verify identity.
Your parent or guardian’s name and email. The system sends them automated messages at several stages.

A proof-of-age document is also required. The parent or guardian uploads it during their part of the process. New Jersey accepts a birth certificate or certified transcript, a driver’s license or learner’s permit, a passport, a baptismal certificate, a USCIS certificate of arrival showing the minor’s age, or a life insurance policy at least one year old.¹¹

The application then moves through a chain of approvals. The minor submits, the employer reviews and verifies the worksite address and proposed hours (both required as of May 2025), and the parent or guardian registers, reviews the job details, uploads the proof of age, and authorizes the employment. A caregiver who has concerns can reject at that stage, which blocks the job. Once all three parties sign off, the Department of Labor issues the decision by email, and the minor can start only after that approval comes through.¹⁰

Casual Work That Doesn’t Need Papers

Not every job triggers the working-papers rules. Federal law excludes casual babysitting from its child labor and wage requirements, defining “casual” as work that is irregular or intermittent and not performed by someone whose primary occupation is babysitting. Under that standard, babysitting generally qualifies as casual when total hours across all babysitting jobs stay under 20 per week.¹² Similar logic applies to occasional yard work or errands for a neighbor. Once the arrangement becomes regular, scheduled, and directed by someone running a business, working papers are back in play.

What Happens If an Employer Skips the Rules

New Jersey treats child labor violations seriously. A first criminal offense carries a fine of $100 to $2,000. Each subsequent violation raises the range to $200 to $4,000. Every day a violation continues counts as a separate offense, and employing each individual minor in violation is also a separate offense.¹³

On top of criminal fines, the Commissioner of Labor can impose administrative penalties: up to $500 for a first violation, up to $1,000 for a second, and up to $2,500 for each violation after that.¹³ These fall on the employer. If a business pressures a teenager to start before the employment certificate is approved, the legal exposure is the employer’s, not the family’s.

1
Department of Labor & Workforce Development. Young Workers in NJ: Rights and Protections for Workers under 18
2
Justia. New Jersey Code 34-2-21.17 – Prohibited Employment
3
U.S. Department of Labor. Prohibited Occupations for Non-Agricultural Employees
4
U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #43: Child Labor Provisions of the FLSA for Nonagricultural Occupations
5
Justia. New Jersey Code 34-2-21.3 – Limitations on Hours of Employment for Minors
6
U.S. Department of Labor. Non-Agricultural Jobs – 14-15
7
Justia. New Jersey Code 34-2-21.4 – Lunch Period for Minors under 18
8
Department of Labor & Workforce Development. New Jersey’s Minimum Wage to Increase in 2026
9
Justia. New Jersey Code 34-2-21.7 – Employment Certificates for Minors
10
NJ.gov. Working Papers Process, Step-by-Step
11
NJ.gov. Acceptable Documents for Providing Proof of Age
12
eCFR. Part 552 – Application of the Fair Labor Standards Act to Domestic Service
13
Justia. New Jersey Code 34-2-21.19 – Violations; Penalties