Many permanent employees go on holiday during the summer months, and student employees can be extremely useful. However, there are now statutory restrictions on the tasks they may perform, with a view to ensuring their safety and health. A number of these provisions have recently been amended under a Royal Decree.

In general, student employees may not be assigned tasks that they are physically or mentally incapable of performing. There is also a prohibition on assigning them tasks involving exposure to ionising radiation, toxic substances, extreme heat or cold, or noise or vibrations.

Would you like to have more tips on how to maintain the health and safety of student employees during work? The following thumb rules may help.

The new Royal Decree has amended certain specific prohibitory provisions:

• Young persons may no longer perform work involving exposure to asbestos, which has been added to the list of proscribed chemical agents. The new Royal Decree also formalises an already existing prohibition on work involving possible exposure to the release of asbestos fibres.
• Another prohibition proscribes painting work involving the use of lead and its compounds and alloys, insofar as they can be absorbed by humans. 
• Student employees are now no longer permitted to work on agricultural machines - these have been added to the category of dangerous machines.
• Greater clarity has been brought into the rules concerning the vehicles that student employees may drive/operate: young persons shall not use motorised equipment to move, lift, stack, store or remove loads, or engage in loading and unloading lorries. Thus student employees may now no longer operate forklift trucks, for example.  However, there is no prohibition on their driving electric transpallets or platform trucks - under certain conditions.

Would you like to have more information about the rules on student employees driving vehicles? Please do have a look at the following detailed list.

A student employee may still be permitted to engage in certain risky activities subject to specific conditions:

• If the student employee has attained a certain age: for example, different sets of rules apply to 16-year-olds in comparison to 18-year-olds.
• Provided of course that you - the employer - take the necessary preventive measures.
• As an employer or manager, you will also be bound to ensure that the measures are effectively implemented and monitored.
• Furthermore, the student employee must remain under the direct supervision of an experienced employee throughout. 
• A further requirement is that you must seek the advice of the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work and of the prevention adviser.