How to Get a Work Permit in Ohio

Cleveland, Ohio is the home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. While there are many teenagers that dream of making a living as rock stars, there are opportunities to earn money in the meantime. In Ohio, minors that are interested in obtaining employment are able to do so at the age of 14. For all minors under the age of 18, a working permit is required prior to their starting employment.  Click here for more information on teen labor laws in Ohio.

While minors can begin working in Ohio at the age of 14, all minors must have a working permit (also called an age and schooling certificate) prior to starting work. The process to obtain the working permit is straightforward.  Minors who are seeking to work in Ohio should take the following steps to obtain the working permit:

1. Minors should first use a pre-application form to pull together the required information and approvals from their possible employer and their parents or legal guardian. This form can be accessed here. The form has a section for the employer where the employer can explain exactly what work they are looking to hire the minor to perform.
2. The minor will need to have a physical exam and have the licensed physician, physician’s assistant or clinical nurse specialist complete the Physician’s Certificate for Minor Work Permit, with which the doctor will certify that the minor is physically fit to work.
3. Once the pre-application is completed and signed, and the Physician’s Certificate obtained, the minor will take both of those to their school, along with proof of age. The appropriate personnel at the school will review the information provided, as well as the minor’s school records and if complete and acceptable, issue the working permit.
4. The minor must sign the working permit in the presence of the issuing officer.
5. The minor should provide a copy of the working permit to their employer prior to beginning work.

While minors as young as age 14 are able to work in the state of Ohio, youth under the age of 18 are required to obtain a working permit, also known in Ohio as an age and schooling certificate, prior to doing so. The employer should not allow a minor to begin employment without their providing this document. In regards to working permits, employers in Ohio have the following responsibilities:

1. The employer must complete the section of the pre-application that explains the type of work the minor will be doing. The employer will sign this section to confirm that they are agreeing to hire the minor.
2. The employer must provide the minor employee a written statement that notes the youth’s wage and/or any other compensation method that they have agreed on.
3. Minor employees must be provided with a statement of earnings on or before every payday that states the amount of money due the employee and how much will be paid.
4. The employer must provide minor employees at least 24 hours of notice prior to any reduction in wages or compensation and must provide a new written statement with these details.
5. The employer must post a list of all of the minors that it employees, along with a summary of Ohio’s child labor laws. This must be posted in a place that is visited by the greatest number of minor employees. The place must be one that all minor employees have access to.
6. The employer must keep the following records for each minor employee for two years: name, address, occupation, number of hours the minor worked each day of the week, the hours work began and the hours work ended, the times when the meal period began and ended, and the dollar amount of wages paid each pay period to the minor.
7. The employer must allow representatives of the Ohio Department of Commerce to access and copy any documents or records relating to minor employees upon request.
8. Should employment terminate, the employer must let the superintendent of schools or the officer who issued the age and schooling certificate know that it is no longer being used within five days of employment ending.
9. Should the minor not appear at work for three days without an explanation, the employer is to consider employment to be terminated and must notify the issuing officer.
10. The employer must follow child labor laws.

Employers in Ohio who are looking to hire teenagers under the age of 18 will not find it difficult to do so. The process that the employer needs to follow is straightforward and the employer’s role is minimal in the minor procuring the working permit. The employer is required to follow child labor laws and must have an age and school certificate on file prior to allowing the minor to begin work.