According to Article 68(1) of the Labour Code, only “minors who have reached the minimum age for admission, have completed compulsory schooling or are enrolled and attending secondary school, and have the physical and mental capacities appropriate to the job” may work.
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Article 68(1) of the Labour Code sets out the following situations in which minors are allowed to work, provided that they
i) has reached the minimum age for admission;
ii) has completed compulsory schooling or is attending secondary school; and
iii) has the physical and mental abilities appropriate to the job.
Concretizing,
i)
The minimum age for admission is 16, in accordance with the provisions of Article 68(2) of the Labour Code.
Nevertheless, it should be noted that a minor under the age of 16 may work provided that
a) meets the conditions listed in b) and c) above, and consists of light work, i.e. “simple and defined tasks which, due to their nature, the physical or mental effort required or the specific conditions in which they are carried out, are not likely to harm their physical integrity, safety and health, school attendance, participation in orientation or training programs, ability to benefit from the instruction given, or their physical, mental, moral, intellectual and cultural development”. - cfr. n.º 3 do art. 68.º do C.T.;
b) has completed compulsory schooling or is enrolled and attending secondary level education, but does not have a professional qualification, provided that they are attending education or training that confers, as the case may be, compulsory schooling, a professional qualification, or both;
c) work done on vacations or public vacations - cfr. no. 2 of article 69 of the C.T. a Judgement of the Lisbon Court of Appeal, handed down in case 1608/10.1TAPDL.L1-3, dated 17-10-2012.
ii)
As for compulsory schooling, currently the rule is that compulsory schooling is maintained until the age of 18, unless the student obtains a diploma in the course corresponding to the secondary level of education at a younger age. - cfr. paragraphs 1 and 4 of art. 2 of Law no. 85/2009, of August 27.
In this way, and since the age of 18 is a condition for the inapplicability of the special regime for minors - since, under the terms of article 122 of the Civil Code, “A minor is anyone who has not yet reached the age of eighteen” - this situation will be relevant in the case where the minor has already obtained the diploma of the course corresponding to the secondary level of education at a younger age, or the case corresponding to the rule, that the minor is attending the secondary level of education.
On the other hand, it should be noted that, under the terms of Article 69(1) of the Labour Code, a minor who is at least 16 years old but has not completed compulsory schooling, is not enrolled and attending secondary school or does not have a professional qualification, may be admitted to work provided that they attend education or training which confers, as the case may be, compulsory schooling, a professional qualification or both.
iii)
Physical and mental abilities appropriate to the job will necessarily be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.
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With regard to the protection of minors' health and safety, Article 72(2) of the Labour Code states that “Work which, by its nature or the conditions in which it is carried out, is harmful to the physical, mental and moral development of minors shall be prohibited or restricted by specific legislation”.
That said,
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In the context of criminal law, Article 82(1) of the Civil Code states that “The use of underage work in violation of the provisions of Article 68(1) or Article 72(2) shall be punishable by imprisonment of up to 2 years or a fine of up to 240 days, if a more serious penalty does not apply by virtue of another legal provision”.
In other words, anyone who employs a minor and who is not in the situations listed above, either with reference to the rule or the exceptions mentioned above, commits the crime.
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