Legislators in multiple states are invoking a widespread labor shortage to push bills that would weaken long-standing child labor law.
Some bills go beyond expanding eligibility or working hours for run-of-the-mill teen jobs. They’d make it easier for kids to fill physically demanding roles at potentially hazardous work sites.
Protections could be stripped for youth most at risk of being exploited by employers, like migrant children and kids from families facing financial problems.
A new Arkansas law signed by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) last week makes it easier for teens as young as 14 to work without obtaining a permit.
The laws and proposals have largely been introduced by Republicans but received support from some Democrats in Ohio and New Jersey.
Legislators say the bills are largely in response to the current hot jobs market, with employers posting an elevated number of openings but struggling to fill positions.
One Republican state senator in Ohio said allowing longer hours for teen workers would help understaffed businesses and build “leaders of the future,” Axios’ Tyler Buchanan reports.
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