Young people start working from their teens to save up for their first cars, for college and for some hobbies. However, their lack of experience and the employer’s poor training plans may lead to workplace accidents resulting in injuries. At this point, you have to look for a Miami Beach workers comp lawyer experienced in workers comp for minors.

There are special conditions for underage employees, as well as specific benefits they may receive under Florida law. Let us explain this less known legal matter in detail.

Florida Regulations for Minor Workers

Our state follows the guidelines of the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act regarding age restrictions for specific types of jobs. Here are the most important restrictions by age group:

14 and 15 Years Old Employees

In Florida, employers can hire teens starting with the age of 14. However, they cannot hire 14 and 15 years old employees in the following fields:

• Public messenger services
• Dangerous animal control
• Constructions
• Electrical works
• Transportation
• Warehousing
• Door-to-door retail sales

Also, there are specific work duty limitations for employees in this age group. They cannot operate motor vehicles or any power-driven machines, except for office equipment. The youngest category of employees cannot work in:

• Processing environments
• Freezers
• Mining
• Manufacturing plants

16 to 18 Years Old

A different set of restrictions applies to employees up to the age of 18, inclusively. Although they are considered adults, these young employees cannot work in the following occupations:

• Logging
• Demolition
• Slaughterhouse
• Mining
• High-rise construction
• Manufacturing
• Processing environments

As for work duty limitations, people under 19 cannot work with explosive, radioactive, toxic and corrosive materials. Also they cannot operate power-driven machines such as meat slicers and electric saws. The law also prohibits these employees from using compressed gas exceeding 40 psi and any motorized machine with an engine capacity above 20 horsepower.

If your Miami Beach workers comp lawyer finds that an underage employee was given any prohibited work duty, there are other legal avenues to explore beyond workers comp for minors.

The Biggest Challenge in Getting Workers Comp Benefits for Minors

Many employers take advantage of a teenager’s lack of experience in labor laws and rules and give them an independent contractor agreement to sign instead of an employment contract. In this situation, the employer may claim that the underage worker is not covered by workers comp, according to Florida workers compensation law.

However, an experienced attorney may be able to prove that the youth’s position meets all the requirements of an employee, according to IRS rules. In this situation, they may be able to get the employer to accept the claim.

Types of Workers Compensation Benefits for Underage Workers

As we stated above, people under 18 receive special workers comp benefits. They include:

• Medical care costs to recover from the work injury
• Future earning capacity, if the workplace accident results in partial or complete disability – in this case the evaluation of the loss of future earnings will cover a period of 40-50 years (until retirement age)
• Special benefit provisions, if the employer hired the minor employee for dangerous jobs that an experienced worker would deem too risky to do

Let a Skilled Miami Beach Workers Comp Lawyer Fight for Your Benefits!

Young workers are often taken advantage of by unscrupulous employers. And when they get injured on the job, the employer will look for any loophole to avoid paying workers comp benefits.

If you let an experienced Miami Beach workers comp lawyer protect your rights, there won’t be any loopholes in your claim. We know exactly how insurance companies try to trick injured workers and how to block these tactics.

We encourage you to reach out to Miami Lawyers 360 as soon as possible after your workplace accident and schedule a free case review at 786-686-2857!