Family Business
Family business is an exception to the laws against child labour. Children in the A.C.T. are allowed to work in their family business as long as it does not harm their education or cause them other hardship. These laws are on a state-by-state basis in Australia, and I don't actually know any facts about other states.
In the A.C.T., the relevant law is the Children and Young People Act (1999). Chapter 10 "Employment of children and young people" states in section 370 "Except as provided by this chapter, a person must not employ a young child", but an exception is made in section 372 "Family businesses excepted. Subject to this chapter, section 370 (1) does not apply to the employment of a young child in or in relation to a business, trade, occupation or calling carried on by a parent of the young child or by a company of which a parent of the young child is a director."
So a family business in the A.C.T. is one owned by one of the parents, or of which one of the parents is a director.
All the legislation in the A.C.T. is available at www.legislation.act.gov.au Links to legislation from all the other Australian states can be found at http://www.comlaw.gov.au/comlaw/comlaw.nsf/preview/othersitelinks?OpenDocument
I personally know of one case where a teenage child working in the family business is going well with their homeschooling. The family was a bit embarrassed about the situation until I showed them from photocopies of the Children and Young People Act that what they were doing was perfectly legal.