New measure in Florida aims to allow 16-year-olds to drop out of school and work full-time.
One amendment to HB 49 — offered by the bill's author, state Rep. Linda Chaney (R) — would repeal laws that prevent 16- and 17-year-olds from working more than 30 hours a week, impose eight-hour workday limits and guarantee mandatory breaks every four hours.
The bill, introduced in September and now under consideration by Florida's Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform and Economic Development, would relegate 16- and 17-year-olds to nearly the same status as an over-18 worker — provided the teens either they have officially left school or are taking classes online or at home. In addition, the bill would also severely limit the ability of local municipalities to enforce their own ordinances to combat the exploitation of minors in the workplace.
The Florida Policy Institute, a statewide nonprofit organization, issued a statement opposes the legislation.
“During a time when Florida lawmakers should be focused on implementing more protections for all workers, not fewer, we are particularly concerned that lawmakers are considering a bill that would undo critical provisions of Florida's child labor laws,” Sadaf Knight, CEO of the organization wrote.
“As FPI pointed out in a recent analysis, child labor violations in Florida have already tripled in the past two years, with most occurring in the service, retail and construction industries. Additionally, Florida already has a child labor exemption process for teenagers who want to work extra hours, but they run afoul of existing regulations, calling into question the intent of the bill,” Knight added.
According the US Department of Laborchild labor violations have increased sharply since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic as employers struggle to find workers.
ONE November report by More Perfect Union found that the child labor bill was born not of organic concern about the employment prospects of Florida's youth, but of lobbying efforts by the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA), a far-right think tank funded by the conservative billionaire Dick Uihlein. .
According to an email obtained by Garcia and Zakarin, the original draft of the legislation was created by FGA's advocacy department and emailed to Chaney, who introduced the bill in the state legislature.
“This is an opportunity for families to be able to help themselves and build life skills that will serve them later in life and help our small businesses that will help our workforce shortages all in one,” Chaney Fox19 said In September.
The FGA is running a nationwide effort to lift restrictions on the use of child and adolescent workers. According to his research The Washington Post, the organization has participated in successful efforts in Iowa and Arkansas to pass bills repealing restrictions on youth employment conditions. The report also found that the push by FGA and other conservative activist groups is being promoted to Republican lawmakers as an extension of the “parental rights” movement, arguing that parents — not the government — should determine a child's terms of employment. Earlier this week, it was a similar bill filed the Indiana Legislature.
As the bill moves through the Florida Legislature, there are already signs it may face opposition from parents and schools — not that that's ever stopped Florida Republicans from pushing draconian policies against their own citizens. ONE January poll conducted by the Florida Institute of Politics in partnership with the Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy firm found that more than 70 percent of Floridians oppose the changes proposed by HB 49, a result that cut across party lines.
“The results of this poll are not surprising – Florida voters want the best for children in this state and are not willing to sacrifice children's well-being so employers can fill open positions with cheap labor,” Knight wrote in a statement. announcing the poll. “Our state lawmakers should focus on improving the health and safety of Florida's youth, not on removing critical labor protections.”
from our partners at https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/florida-republicans-introduce-bill-gutting-teen-labor-restrictions-1234944271/