Child Labor on the Rise in the USA
Many minors in the USA are going to work as the rules regarding child labor have been relaxed in several states. One reason for this is the scarcity of adult applicants for certain jobs. Consumer advocates are concerned about the safety of child labor.
“Do not sell our children”, shout dozens of protesters in the Iowa State Capitol. They are demonstrating against a new child labor law. The state of Iowa is located in the Midwest of the United States, with a population of just around three million and a major problem: a shortage of new labor force.
To address this issue, the conservative government of the state has decided to allow minors to fill in some of the gaps and has relaxed the rules. “We have teenagers participating in sports activities until 10 p.m. If they wanted to work, they were only allowed to do so for four hours per day,” says Republican representative Dave Deyoe. “It just didn’t make sense that we had different rules for sports and employment.”
Since July, for example, 14 and 15-year-olds are allowed to work until 9 p.m. after school, and even until 11 p.m. during school holidays. The same rules as adults apply to 16 and 17-year-olds regarding working hours. The service industry, in particular, is pleased with these changes.
“I have a whole stack of applicants”
Stephani Jimmerson is scraping off thawed ice remnants from the freezer in her counter. The 56-year-old owns an ice cream shop in the small town of Waukee. She employs up to 35 staff members and part-time workers, almost all of whom are minors. According to her, this is the only way it can work anymore. There are hardly any adult applicants for service jobs.
She wonders where all the people who used to work in the industry have gone since the pandemic. “The kids are doing a great job,” says Jimmerson. “I expect a lot from them, and if they no longer want to work, I have a whole stack of other applicants whom I had to reject. So, I’ll just find someone new.”
Construction jobs are also possible now
However, for the mother of three, it is clear that school and leisure should be the priority for children. Most of them earn around €11.30 per hour, significantly above the minimum wage. Jimmerson says that she cannot afford to pay even more to attract adult applicants as a small business.
The new rules not only apply to typical part-time jobs for students but also to other industries. Minors in Iowa are now allowed to work in more dangerous jobs, such as construction sites. Charlie Wishman, president of the labor union federation, sees this as a problem: “Unfortunately, it affects poor families, migrants, and refugees much more than others.” This is particularly the case in states with significant agriculture, such as Iowa. “Many migrant children from the South work here.”
Mia feels abandoned
Colorado is also a state with a significant agricultural sector. The town of Center is surrounded by potato and lettuce fields. Most of those who work in the harvest are migrants from Central and South America, including many minors like 17-year-old Mia. Last year, she had a terrible accident while working. A tractor driver failed to see the girl and ran her over. Due to her severe injuries, Mia could hardly walk for months.
Mia feels abandoned by the company she worked for. “They didn’t even report the accident. They just continued working after taking me to the emergency room.” Although the company covered her medical expenses, they wanted to sweep the incident under the rug. “It was very frustrating.”
Mia says that the company refused to compensate her. She believes the government should do more to protect young workers from accidents and exploitation. She thinks that many people do not even consider this issue, especially when it comes to people like them from smaller towns. “No one knows us. If it doesn’t affect someone they know, most people think it’s not their problem.”
Suspicion falls on wealthy individuals
In the capital city of Washington, the national consumer protection organization NCL is concerned about the growing child labor in the country. They suspect that besides the shortage of labor, there is another reason why more and more states are relaxing their rules.
“There is a fear that this is part of a plan to undermine labor protection in general,” says Reid Maki, department head for child labor issues. Behind it are wealthy individuals and groups who dislike trade unions and do not want to pay higher wages.
US media report that a conservative think tank from Florida is particularly involved in this, advocating for relaxed rules on child labor with politicians across the country. Six out of 50 states have already done so. Others may follow suit.
Demand for more inspectors
At the federal level, the government of Democrat Joe Biden opposes such attempts. The consumer advocates at NCL are now eagerly looking forward to the upcoming year when elections will be held in the USA.
“When Donald Trump was president, he tried to abolish some rules, such as the ban on children spraying pesticides in fields,” explains Maki. However, there was no support for this, so the previous administration dropped this test balloon. “But if Trump were to be elected again and if the Republicans perform well in the parliamentary elections, he could try something like this again,” says the consumer advocate.
However, the current government could do more, according to Maki. For example, hiring more inspectors for violations. Currently, NCL states that there is only one inspector for every 200,000 workers.