School Attendance Act, 1926

• Permanent Page URL

Restriction on employment of children.

7.—(1) In addition and without prejudice to any other lawful prohibition of or restriction on the employment of children, the Minister may by order make regulations for prohibiting the employment of children to whom this Act applies at such times or places or in such manner as to prevent or interfere with their attendance at school in accordance with this Act or their obtaining proper benefit from such attendance, and in particular may, in furtherance of that object, by such regulations prohibit or restrict the employment of such children in particular occupations or during particular hours.

(2) Any person who employs a child in contravention of a regulation made under this section shall be guilty of an offence under this section, and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof, in the case of a first offence to a fine not exceeding forty shillings, and, in the case of a second or any subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding five pounds.

(3) Regulations made under this section shall not prevent any child who immediately before the commencement of this Act is in lawful employment from continuing in such employment or prevent the exercise of manual labour by a child lawfully detained in a certified industrial or reformatory school or the receipt by any child of instruction in manual labour in any school.

(4) Every regulation made under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made, and if a resolution is passed by either such House within the next subsequent twenty-one days on which that House has sat annulling such regulation such regulation shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under such regulation.