Chamber Supports More Flexible Conditions for Youth Employment

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications is considering easing conditions for the employment of minors to encourage employers to hire young people. The Chamber believes there should be fewer restrictions related to the employment of minors and supports the Ministry's plan to simplify the related regulations.

Law Should Set Minimum Requirements
Chamber supports the goal of simplifying regulations related to the employment of minors so that the requirements are more lenient and encourage employers to hire youth. We believe the law should establish minimum standards for youth employment, but ultimately each company can decide whether to implement stricter internal requirements. Among other things, the rule requiring parental consent for the employment of minors will remain, ensuring that each parent can determine whether their child is suitable for the job and prepared for the tasks.

Longer Opportunity to Work During Summer Holidays
Chamber supports the Ministry’s plan to allow minors to work for more than half of the summer holiday, provided that at least four weeks remain available for rest. This change increases flexibility and accommodates young people who wish to work more during the summer than current legislation permits.

Simplifying the Labour Inspectorate Approval Process
Currently, hiring children under 13 requires prior approval from the Labour Inspectorate, which can be time-consuming. Chamber emphasizes the importance of making this approval process faster and smoother to avoid unnecessary obstacles when all other employment conditions are met.

Modernizing Restrictions on Handling Money and Alcohol
Chamber supports the idea of lowering the minimum age for handling money to 12, given that cash transactions are increasingly rare and such tasks may no longer be overly complex. Although the law provides minimum standards, every business can choose to set higher internal thresholds. Moreover, parental consent remains a requirement, and if a minor is not ready to handle cash at a given age, a parent has the right to refuse permission.

Chamber is more cautious about lowering the age limit for handling alcohol. If the Ministry considers allowing 13-year-olds to handle alcohol in customer service roles, we believe the minimum age should be at least 16. Additionally, we pointed out the need to analyze whether exceptions to the general rule could be justified. For instance, the law currently prohibits both a minor selling cocktails in a bar and one selling smoked fish and open home-brewed beer at a family stall—though legally similar, these situations differ significantly in nature and impact, and a differentiated legal approach would be reasonable.