With summer holidays upon us, and many local businesses employing young people over the busiest visitor season, the Wage Inspectorate has issued a reminder of the rules around children's employment.

New data from Victoria's child employment regulator shows kids in regional Victoria are more likely to join the workforce before the age of 15 than those in metropolitan Melbourne.

In 2023, a Phillip Island café was fined $2000 for employing a child below the minimum working age without a permit, while a Gippsland Pizza restaurant was fined $4000 for breaking child employment laws.

In 2022 the Wage Inspectorate visited 86 Gippsland businesses checking for compliance, including in Bass Coast.

Seventy-six per cent of businesses were referred for further investigation after being found to not be complying with child employment laws.

Half of the non-compliant businesses were based on Phillip Island or in San Remo.

Child employment

Victoria's child employment laws require businesses to hold a child employment licence before they employ anyone under 15 and to notify Wage Inspectorate Victoria of any children they employ.

Licence data shows 52 per cent of licences are issued to regional businesses and 49 per cent of kids in the workforce are in regional Victoria - that's despite census data suggesting there are three times as many kids living in metropolitan Melbourne.

Of regional areas, Gippsland has the third highest number of children under 15 working (111 or 9 per cent of the state's total ), behind Barwon South West (216) and Hume (173).

With data suggesting kids in regional areas are more likely to be looking for work over the summer holidays, the Wage Inspectorate is encouraging regional businesses to make sure they understand the state's child employment licensing system, and rules around supervision, rest breaks and working hours.

Child employment licences are free, and businesses can employ multiple children under the one licence. Employing a child without a licence is a crime and may be penalised.

"As a country kid myself, I'm not surprised to see so many country businesses giving local kids the opportunity to enter the workforce and earn their first paycheck," said Commissioner of Wage Inspectorate Victoria Robert Hortle.

"If regional kids are more likely to work, regional businesses have an even greater incentive to learn about child employment laws. You don't want your well-intentioned decision to give a kid their first job to put you on the wrong side of the law.

"Kids working in regional areas can be a great help to businesses and the experience can be invaluable for the kids. It's win-win, as long as it is done safely and legally."

Licence requirements

In Victoria, children can work in retail and hospitality from the age of 13, but most businesses need a licence before employing anyone under 15. 

Workers under 15 must be supervised by someone who holds a valid Victorian Working with Children Clearance (unless exempt).

Child employment laws restrict when businesses can employ children and how long they can work:

• during a school term, children can be employed for a maximum of three hours a day and 12 hours per week
• during school holidays, children can be employed up to six hours a day and 30 hours a week
• children can only work between 6am and 9pm.

Children must also receive a 30-minute rest break after every three hours work and have at least 12 hours break between shifts.

Further information at wageinspectorate.vic.gov.au.