2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY-NINE - Labor (§§ 1 — 3004) › PART I - Labor Provisions Generally (§§ 1 — 510k) › Chapter 19 - Employment of Women and Minors; Compulsory School Attendance (§§ 431 — 476d) › § 435 - Employment of minors—Employment certificates and special permits; peddling, coffee picking and vocational training excepted

No minor between fourteen (14) and less than eighteen (18) years of age shall be employed, nor shall he be permitted, or suffered to work in any gainful occupation unless his employer obtains and keeps in his files, and accessible to any official, inspector, or other person authorized to enforce or assist in the enforcement of §§ 431—443a and 446—456 of this title, an employment certificate or a special permit issued in accordance with the provisions contained hereinafter in §§ 431—443a and 446—456 of this title, and unless said employer posts a complete list of all minors employed in said occupation, in a conspicuous place of the site where said minors are employed, with the exception of minors engaged in peddling, with regard to which no employment certificate shall be required for minors who are sixteen (16) or more years of age, provided they do not work for an employer, but simply a card to be provided by the Department of Labor and Human Resources after the minor has proved that he is more than sixteen (16) years old and in sound physical condition, as shown by the proper medical certificate.
In addition to the exemption provided for self-employed peddlers as provided in the preceding paragraph, neither shall it apply with regard to the requirement of requesting and or keeping the employment certificate or special permit, in those cases where minors between fourteen (14) and less than eighteen (18) years of age are employed in coffee picking. For these cases no employment certificate or special permit whatsoever shall be required, but simply a card provided by the Department of Labor and Human Resources after ascertaining that the minor is over fourteen (14) years of age and in sound physical condition. Said card shall be issued by petition of the minor concerned, who shall appear to request it, accompanied by his father, mother, guardian, or custodian; said petition shall contain the following information about the minor: certificate of age, and of physical and mental fitness, school record, and that information relative to the minor’s situation at school, and his school schedule signed by the principal or by the authorized person. Once issued, it shall be given and will belong to the minor, who must show it to each employer who hires him, and he must also keep it with him at all times while he is at work under the provisions thereof. Said card shall be identical to the one issued to self-employed peddlers, as it is provided in this section, but its procedure and issuing shall follow, insofar as it is consistent with what is provided herein, what is established in § 443 of this title for cases of peddlers employed by an employer; Provided, however, That the statement of the future employer provided in subsection (a) of § 437 of this title shall not be required for it to be issued. The Secretary of Labor and Human Resources shall have discretion to regulate the term of duration of the card established herein, pursuant to the circumstances that concur in each case.
None of the provisions of this section shall apply to work done by minors in public or private schools recognized by the Department of Education of Puerto Rico, in occupations, shops, factories or public or private establishments, where the work done by said minors constitutes part of the school programs such as training, guidance, or vocational preparation courses under the auspices of the Department of Education of Puerto Rico and the direct supervision and instruction of school officials or teachers; Provided, That the Secretary of Labor and Human Resources, or any person duly authorized by him, may establish, in mutual agreement with the Secretary of Education, or the coordinators, advisors, guides and directors of the vocational courses, authorized by the Secretary of Education, the adequate procedure that will make these courses feasible. Such pupils shall be protected by the labor and workmen’s compensation laws, insofar as they may be applicable, and, in the cases covered by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, they shall be subject to its provisions and regulations. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to mean that the pupil may not receive compensation during the term of his vocational training.
History —May 12, 1942, No. 230, p. 1298, § 5; Apr. 15, 1946, No. 325, p. 870, § 1; June 1, 1983, No. 49, p. 85.