Welcome to the Indiana Department of Labor

The mission of the Indiana Department of Labor is to advance the safety, health and prosperity of Hoosiers in the workplace. In order to make significant strides in achieving our mission, we emphasize both enforcement and voluntary compliance for employers. Our office administers the IOSHA program, state wage and hour and youth employment laws, as well as underground coal mine safety. We also have many free training and educational resources available to the public through our INSafe Division. Finally, our Quality, Metrics & Statistics Division counts, measures and tracks trends internally and externally. Our goal is to help make Indiana a great place to work and to do business. Let us know how we can help you!

Changes to Indiana's Youth Employment Laws (January 1, 2025)

Effective January 1, 2025, Indiana’s Youth Employment rules will change to closer mirror federal child labor laws, with a few notable differences.

Changes to the Youth Employment laws include:

• 16- and 17-year-olds may now work the same hours and days as an adult. No parental permission is required for 16- and 17-year-olds to work longer or later hours.
• 14- and 15-year-olds are still bound by the same hour and day restrictions but may now work until 9:00 PM on any day between June 1st and Labor Day. (Some exceptions may apply. Please see our website at www.in.gov/dol/youth-employment/youth-employment-home/ or refer to Indiana Code 22-2-18.1-16.)
• The restrictions on minors working in prohibited or hazardous occupations continue to mirror federal law.
• Any employer that employs five (5) or more minors (14-, 15-, 16, or 17-year-olds) must register the minor in the Youth Employment System (YES).
  • The minor’s date of hire is the first day on which the minor attends orientation or performs work for the employer.
  • Any new or changed information regarding a qualifying location, or the names and numbers of minors at each qualifying location, must now be entered on or before the fifteenth and last business day of each month.
• Employers of 14- and 15-year-olds must update their youth employment posters to reflect the changes in law. This and other labor posters are available for free online at www.in.gov/dol/publications/ . These posters may also be offered by other, for-profit organizations. Please ensure whatever poster you choose contains complete and correct information.

If you have specific questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us by phone at (317) 232-2655 or by e-mail at YouthEmployment@dol.in.gov .

Avoid expensive penalties. Set up your YES account today.

Media Release: Hoosier Employers Who Hire Minors Face New Requirements

Indiana’s youth-employment law is now fully in effect. Effective July 1, 2021, Indiana has eliminated work permits* completely, and now requires all employers with five or more minor employees (under age 18) to begin using the Indiana Department of Labor’s Youth Employment System (YES) to track and report minor-employee information.

YES has been available since June 1, 2021 and thousands of employers have already set up their accounts and collectively registered tens of thousands of minor employees. Employers who fail to comply with the new law that goes could face penalties of up to $400 per infraction, per minor employee.

YES is simple and easy to use. Employers can access the app via their smart device, such as your smartphone or tablet, as well as their desktop or laptop. Once they’ve set up their employer profile, they can enter your minor data – name, age and hire date – within minutes.

The system will not impact the state’s work-hour requirement for minors, and all employers must still comply with the Teens Work Hour restrictions and Prohibited and Hazardous Occupation restrictions for minors.

For more information about the requirements and the YES registry, click here.

• Youth Employment Law Now in Effect

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