By Jim Turner ©2023 The News Service of Florida
TALLAHASSEE — A House panel Wednesday approved a proposal that would loosen regulations about the numbers of hours that 16-year-old and 17-year-old youths can work, rolling back parts of a decades-old child labor law.
The Republican-controlled House Regulatory Reform & Economic Development Subcommittee voted 10-5 along party lines to back the bill (HB 49), filed by Rep. Linda Chaney, R-St. Pete Beach, for the 2024 legislative session.
Democrats criticized the proposal, saying it would provide businesses with “cheap labor” amid a crackdown on undocumented workers and warning it would result in lower high-school graduation rates.
Chaney described the proposal as providing “flexible work options” to young people.
“This bill is not about children,” Chaney said. “This bill is about 16- and 17-year-olds. These are youth workers that are driving automobiles. They are not children.”
A state labor law includes a series of restrictions for 16- and 17-year-olds, including how many hours they can work, what times of day they can work and jobs they can perform. Exceptions include for minors 17 or younger who, for example, are married, in the military or have graduated from high school or earned high-school equivalency diplomas.
The bill would remove prohibitions on 16- and 17-year-olds working before 6:30 a.m. or after 11 p.m. It also would remove a prohibition on them working more than eight hours when school is scheduled the following day and more than 30 hours a week when school is in session.
The bill also would prevent local governments from imposing restrictions stricter than state law.
Florida is the 16th state where legislation has been proposed during the past two years to roll back child labor restrictions.
Rep. Jeff Holcomb, R-Spring Hill, supported the proposal by saying he started work by mowing lawns at age 12 and was busing tables by age 16.
“I learned a work ethic. I learned the value of $1, I learned how to save money,” Holcomb said.
While the measure was opposed by groups such as the Florida PTA and the League of Women Voters, it was backed by the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association.
“We believe the intent is not to erode the importance of education, but to reduce unnecessary restrictive regulation, expand available staffing and grow financial and career development opportunities for young Floridians,” said Samantha Padgett, vice president of government relations for the restaurant and lodging group.
Republicans rejected a series of amendments proposed by Democrats, including a proposal to recreate a state Department of Labor. The department was dissolved about two decades ago.
“When we talk about minimum wage, Florida has some of the poorest enforcement of wage theft in the country,” Rep. Ashley Gantt, D-Miami, said. “And we are asking children to function as adults and not even have a place where they can actually report such violations from employers.”
Rep. Susan Valdes, D-Tampa, noted that lawmakers this spring approved later start times for high schools, pointing to a need for teens to get adequate sleep. She said “standards in the state of Florida to earn a high school diploma are much tougher than some” states that have already lowered age restrictions for workers.
Subcommittee Chairman Tyler Sirois, R-Merritt Island, characterized as “inflammatory” a question by Rep. Angie Nixon, D-Jacksonville, about whether the goal of the bill was to use children to replace a shortage of immigrant workers caused by recent legislation.
Chaney said the federal government lists numerous hazardous occupations that would remain unavailable to workers under 18.
The 2024 session will start Jan. 9. Chaney’s bill would need approval from two more House panels before it could go to the full House. A Senate version has not been filed.
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