Extract:
Will the U.S. see rollbacks to child labor laws under the Trump administration? The answer isn’t clear, but HR leaders may want to start paying attention.
The Florida Legislature has filed two bills that would erode existing child labor laws: Both bills would allow employers to schedule all 16 and 17-year-olds, as well as any 14 and 15-year-olds who have graduated from high school or are virtual students, for unlimited hours and days without breaks. Just last year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis tried to push a proposal that would allow homeschooled and virtual students to be exempt from time regulations when they turn 16.
“Child labor is the canary in the coal mine,” says Ann Olivarius, veteran civil rights attorney and senior partner at McAllister Olivarius. “There is no world in which legislatures strip child workers of their rights, but other rights and protections are steadfastly maintained for adults.”
Olivarius stresses that child workers are uniquely vulnerable to exploitation. Since adults inherently hold a position of authority over children on a legal and social level, child workers are less likely to be able to advocate for themselves — and even less likely to know their rights in the workplace.
“A child won’t know how to identify sexual harassment by a co-worker or manager as well as an adult would,” says Olivarius. “They’ll also struggle more to lodge a complaint. They’ll be disbelieved to a higher degree, and this goes for racism or any other violation of civil law.”