Is It Legal for 16-Year-Old Workers to Work 8 Hours a Day?

Clause 2, Article 146 of the 2019 Labor Code stipulates:

Working hours for individuals aged from full 15 years to under 18 years must not exceed 08 hours per day and 40 hours per week. Individuals aged from full 15 years to under 18 years may work overtime or at night in certain professions and jobs according to the list issued by the Minister of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs.

As per this regulation, individuals aged from full 15 years to under 18 years must not work more than 08 hours per day. Hence, a 16-year-old worker working for 8 hours and 01 day is not against the law. However, it should be noted that they are only allowed to work up to 40 hours in a week. Therefore, if a 16-year-old worker works for 08 hours and 01 day in one or several days of the week, they must work fewer hours on the remaining days to ensure compliance with the weekly stipulated hours.

A 16-year-old may work overtime; however, this only applies to certain professions and jobs according to the list issued with Circular 09/2020/TT-BLDTBXH.

Respectfully!