MODULE 10 А

Reading

1 Read the text and put sentences (A–H) in the correct gaps (1–6). There are two extra sentences.

A For any other work, things are different.

B First, though, you’ll need to have an interview.

C However, you can still only work for a maximum of twelve hours in a week.

D It is up to you and your parents to decide if they are safe.

E Alternatively, you can continue your education in Year Twelve and work part-time.

F You cannot earn more than this.

G Do you want to get part-time work?

H This means delivering newspapers to people’s houses before school.

Children, work and the law

Are you still at school? 1 Before you do, read this leaflet to find out what you can and can’t do.

First of all, there are some jobs that you are free to do at any age. 2 These include working for friends and neighbours, babysitting and any work experience organised by your school. If this is the kind of job you want to do, you don’t have to read any further.

3 If you are under thirteen, you are not legally allowed to work at all, not even part-time. If you are between thirteen and sixteen years old, or if you are still at school in Year Eleven or below, a person needs a special licence to employ you.

The most popular job for children is the paper round. 4 Unfortunately, recent changes to the law have made this more difficult: school children can’t start working until 7 a.m. In fact, on school days and Sundays you can only work two hours a day and you must finish work by 7 p.m. If you are thirteen or fourteen, you may work for a total of five hours on a Saturday, and if you are fifteen or sixteen, you can work for eight hours. 5

There are also some jobs that you can’t do at all. These include the following:

• working in many factories

• working in construction

• working with transport

• working in restaurants where alcohol is served

Apart from paper rounds, most school children work in shops or fast food restaurants that don’t serve alcohol.

Special note for sixteen-year-olds:

If you are sixteen and have finished Year Eleven at school, you may leave school and find a full-time job. 6 In both cases, you are now free to work more hours and in more places than thirteen–sixteen-year-olds in Year Eleven or below. However, if you are sixteen and still in Year Eleven, you and your employer must follow the rules above.