Ohio GOP advances effort to weaken child labor laws
The Republican-controlled Ohio Legislature is advancing an effort to allow 14 and 15-year-olds to work until 9 p.m. on school nights, despite current law implementing a 7 p.m. curfew.
The Republican-controlled Ohio Legislature is advancing an effort to allow 14 and 15-year-olds to work until 9 p.m. on school nights, despite current law implementing a 7 p.m. curfew.
Children that work between 7 and 9 p.m. would need approval from both a parent or guardians and from a school official.
The plan calls for changes to state and federal labor laws. The Senate Workforce Committee approved Senate Bill 50 last Tuesday, which alters current child labor laws in Ohio; the committee also approved resolution urging the United States Congress to do the same. Congress would need to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act, which was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938.
Before the bill passed out of committee 4-2 on party lines, with both Democrats on the committee voting against it, testimony was heard from liberal advocacy group Policy Matters Ohio. In opposition of the bill, the organization’s representative Heather Smith testified that the legislation opens a lane for employers and corporations to take advantage of children while stymying adult workers.
“Dismantling long-settled laws designed to protect children from abuse clears the way for corporations to access and exploit children in desperate situations, instead of paying livable wages that would attract adult workers,” Smith said in a letter to lawmakers.
State Sen. Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster), the sponsor of the bill and resolution, cited staffing shortages of employers in his district as the basis for the legislation.
SB 50 still needs to pass a full Senate vote and then in the Republican-controlled Ohio House of Representatives before heading to Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R) desk.
