On this day in 1967, results released from a national census conducted the year before showed 10 teenagers in Canberra operated their own businesses and even employed labour.
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Three of these 10 budding entrepreneurs were girls, aged from 15 to 19.
Today, we call these business-oriented teenagers "teenpreneurs".
Teenagers are allowed to work in Canberra. However, those under 15 are protected by specific employment rules. They can only work up to 10 hours per week and depending on the age, have limited daily work hours. The work must not get in the way of school and requires parental consent. Those between 15-17 have slightly less strict rules with the key focus being not missing school due to work as their education is the main priority.
These safeguards have also come in conjunction with various initiatives to help teenagers develop a business bug.
In 2015, the Lighthouse Business Innovation Centre launched Canberra's inaugural Teen Start-up Camp that provides teenagers with an opportunity to pitch business ideas a panel of judges. They can either enter individually or as a group.
Businesses such as Edii have also launched its own initiatives to help these teenagers.
They developed a Maker2Market program since 2016 to aid creative youths in developing their business and marketing skills. It provides an avenue for them to learn how to generate revenue from their creativity.
The continued development of the business bug in teenagers more than half a century later demonstrates the everlasting desire for entrepreneurship.
