Can You Hire A 14 Or 15 Year Old?

Can you hire a 14 or 15 year old in New Zealand? In many cases, yes. New Zealand doesn't have one general minimum working age for every job, but there are some clear limits you need to work around.

If you're searching for the legal age to work in NZ, the practical answer is that age is only part of the picture. You also need to think about school hours, late-night work, the type of work, health and safety, and how you'll document the arrangement.

The good news is that this doesn't have to be complicated. With the right steps, hiring a teenager can be a positive move for your business and a safe, fair first job for them.

Can You Hire A 14 Or 15 Year Old In New Zealand?

Yes, you can usually hire a 14 or 15 year old in New Zealand, as long as the job fits the legal restrictions for young workers.

There isn't a single rule that says someone must be 16 before they can have a job. However, different laws affect what a young person can do, when they can work, and how you need to manage them.

The main rules come from areas such as:

• The Employment Relations Act 2000, which covers employment agreements, good faith, records and employment rights.
• The Education and Training Act 2020, which supports school attendance for children under 16.
• The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and related regulations, which place extra care around young workers and hazardous work.
• The Holidays Act 2003, which gives employees leave and holiday entitlements.

For a 14 or 15 year old, you should start by asking three simple questions:

• Will the work happen outside school hours?
• Is the work safe and age-appropriate?
• Have you put the arrangement in writing before they start?

If the answer to any of these is no, pause before making the offer. A young worker can be a great fit for weekend, after-school or holiday shifts, but you need to design the role properly from the start.

What Hours Can A School-Age Employee Work?

A school-age employee under 16 generally can't work during school hours, before 6am or after 10pm, and the job must not get in the way of their schooling.

This is one of the biggest practical limits when you hire under 16 in New Zealand. Even if the young person and their parent are keen, you shouldn't roster them in a way that clashes with school attendance or makes it hard for them to keep up with school.

For most businesses, that means the safest shifts are:

• short after-school shifts, finishing well before 10pm;
• weekend shifts during the day or early evening;
• school holiday shifts, as long as the work is still safe and suitable;
• occasional cover shifts that don't affect rest, homework or travel home.

Say you run a cafe in Wellington and want to hire Mia, who is 15. A roster of Tuesday and Thursday from 4pm to 7pm, plus Saturday from 9am to 1pm, is 10 hours a week. On the face of it, that works better than a Friday 5pm to 11pm shift, because the late shift would run past 10pm.

You should also factor in transport. If the shift technically ends at 9.45pm but the young person won't get home until close to midnight, that may still be a poor fit from a safety and wellbeing point of view.

What Jobs Can A 14 Or 15 Year Old Do?

It depends on the job, because younger workers have extra restrictions around hazardous places, equipment and physical tasks.

For 14 year olds, you need to be especially careful. Workers under 15 must not be employed in certain higher-risk areas, including places such as construction sites, logging operations, and areas where goods are being prepared or manufactured for trade or sale. They also shouldn't be operating dangerous machinery or doing work involving heavy lifting.

In practice, a 14 year old may be better suited to low-risk tasks such as:

• serving customers in a front-of-house area, if the workplace is safe;
• tidying shelves or light retail duties;
• basic admin tasks;
• taking bookings or helping with simple customer service;
• assisting at events with close supervision.

Be careful with hospitality roles. A 14 year old helping at the counter may be very different from a 14 year old working in a commercial kitchen where food is being prepared for sale, hot equipment is used and cleaning chemicals are nearby.

For 15 year olds, the rules are a little more flexible, but your health and safety duties still apply. You need to assess whether the specific tasks, tools, pace of work and level of supervision are suitable.

If your business involves alcohol, vaping products, gambling, heavy vehicles, manufacturing or high-risk equipment, get tailored advice before hiring a young worker into that part of the business. Those industries often have extra rules that sit on top of ordinary employment law.

Do You Need Parental Consent To Hire Someone Under 16?

Parental consent isn't always a formal legal requirement, but it's a very sensible step when you're hiring someone under 16.

A parent or guardian's involvement helps everyone stay aligned on working hours, transport, emergency contacts and the type of work involved. It also gives you a chance to confirm that the job won't interfere with school.

There's another reason to be careful. In New Zealand, contracts with people under 18 can be treated differently from contracts with adults. Depending on the situation, issues can arise around whether the contract is fair and reasonable, and whether it can be enforced in the usual way. That doesn't mean you can't hire a young person, but it does mean you should avoid casual handshake arrangements or informal work experience arrangements.

Before the first shift, it's worth collecting:

• the young person's full name, date of birth, address and contact details;
• a parent or guardian's name and contact details;
• emergency contact details;
• any relevant medical or safety information you need for the role;
• written acknowledgement from the parent or guardian that they know the role, hours and duties;
• confirmation that the worker can safely travel to and from work.

Keep this separate from the employment agreement. The young person is still the employee. A parent generally shouldn't be treated as the person who can waive the employee's rights or agree to unsafe working conditions.

What Should A Young Worker Employment Agreement Include?

You should give a young worker a written employment agreement before they start work, just as you would for any other employee.

Under the Employment Relations Act 2000, employees must have a written employment agreement. For a school-age employee in New Zealand, the agreement should be extra clear about hours, duties, supervision and safety.

Don't treat a young person as a contractor just because the role is casual or part-time. If you're setting the roster, supervising the work, providing the tools and directing how tasks are done, they may well be an employee. The Employment Relations Amendment Act 2026 introduced a contractor gateway test for some arrangements, but that doesn't mean labels win over reality. If a teenager is working ordinary shifts inside your business, you should be very cautious about using a contractor setup or statement of work.

Employment Agreement Outline For A Young Worker

A template can be a helpful starting point, but it often misses the details that matter for your business. A lawyer should tailor the agreement before you use it.

1. Parties - name your business correctly, including the company name and NZBN if relevant, and name the employee.
2. Role And Duties - describe the job in plain English and exclude tasks they aren't allowed to do.
3. Employment Type - state whether the role is part-time, casual or fixed-term, and make sure the label matches the real arrangement.
4. Hours Of Work - set out ordinary shift patterns and confirm there will be no work during school hours, before 6am or after 10pm if they're under 16.
5. Pay - record the hourly rate, pay cycle and how wages will be paid.
6. Breaks - include meal and rest break arrangements that fit the length of each shift.
7. Supervision And Training - explain who supervises them and what training they'll receive before doing tasks alone.
8. Health And Safety - cover safe work rules, reporting hazards and tasks they must not perform.
9. Leave And Holidays - refer to Holidays Act 2003 entitlements, including annual holidays, public holidays and sick leave where they qualify.
10. Ending Employment - include notice requirements and any trial period only if it's legally drafted and agreed before work starts.

Employees under 16 aren't covered by the adult minimum wage rate, but that doesn't mean pay should be an afterthought. Record the agreed rate clearly, pay for all training and trial shifts, and keep accurate wage, time and leave records.

How Do You Hire A Teenager Safely?

You hire a teenager safely by designing the role first, then checking the hours, risks, agreement and supervision before their first shift.

Young workers often haven't developed the confidence to speak up when something feels unsafe or unclear. Your systems need to make that easy for them.

A Practical Hiring Checklist

1. Confirm Their Age - check whether they are 14, 15 or older, because the rules change with age.
2. Map The Tasks - list exactly what they'll do, what they won't do, and what requires supervision.
3. Check The Work Area - make sure they won't be placed in restricted or high-risk areas, especially if they're under 15.
4. Set Safe Hours - keep shifts outside school hours and within the 6am to 10pm window for under-16 workers.
5. Speak With A Parent Or Guardian - confirm the role, hours, travel arrangements, any work experience expectations and emergency contacts.
6. Prepare The Employment Agreement - give them time to read it and ask questions before signing.
7. Induct Them Properly - cover hazards, customer behaviour, equipment, cleaning products, bullying and who to ask for help.
8. Keep Good Records - store signed agreements, rosters, timesheets, wage records, leave records and safety training notes.

For example, Mike runs a small retail store and wants to hire Leo, who is 14, for Saturday shifts from 10am to 2pm. Leo will greet customers, restock light items and tidy displays. Mike decides Leo won't use the box cutter, won't lift heavy cartons and won't be left alone in the store. Mike gets a parent acknowledgement, gives Leo a written casual employment agreement, and records a 30-minute induction. That setup is much safer than simply asking Leo to "help out on Saturdays" with no paperwork or boundaries.

Leave and holiday rights still matter. For example, employees generally become entitled to four weeks' paid annual holidays after 12 months of continuous employment. Employees may also be entitled to 10 days of sick leave after meeting the six-month eligibility rules. Public holiday entitlements can apply if the day would otherwise be a working day for them.

Key Takeaways

• There's no single general minimum age for work in New Zealand, but 14 and 15 year olds are subject to important restrictions.
• Under-16 workers generally can't work during school hours, before 6am or after 10pm.
• Workers under 15 must be kept away from certain high-risk areas and tasks, including many manufacturing, construction, machinery and heavy lifting situations.
• Parental involvement is strongly recommended, even where consent isn't strictly required.
• A written employment agreement should clearly cover duties, hours, pay, supervision, safety and leave entitlements.
• Don't use a contractor label to avoid employment obligations, especially where the young person works set shifts under your direction.

If you'd like help with your young worker employment agreements, safe hiring process, contractor classification questions or workplace policies, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.