Iowa Advances Child Labor Bill

The Iowa State Capitol building is seen in Des Moines, IA., on Oct. 9, 2019. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The Iowa Senate passed a bill on Tuesday that would allow minors to work in currently banned roles and longer hours.

The new bill would extend the hours teens under 16 could work up to six hours per day, two more than currently allowed. It would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to serve alcohol at restaurants with parental permission.

Two Republicans crossed the floor to vote against the bill with Democrats. However, the bill still passed 32-17 in the GOP-controlled Senate. The Iowa House will now consider the bill before it is sent to Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds for approval.

“Ultimately, parents and kids will decide if they want to work or not,” Reynolds said earlier this month. “It teaches the kids a lot. And if they have the time to do it and they want to earn some additional money, I don’t think we should discourage that.”

The bill’s mostly Republican supporters argue that it would give children valuable opportunities to work and get paid, while its mostly Democrat opponents have voiced concerns about potential harm to children and increased risk of workplace accidents and injuries among youth.

Some labor unions have organized protests to oppose the bill. The U.S. Department of Labor’s top lawyer, Seema Nanda, criticized the bill, saying it is “irresponsible for states to consider loosening child labor protections.”

Sen. Adrian Dickey (R-Packwood), the bill’s floor manager, said it would allow certain young people who want to work the ability to enjoy the rewards of a paycheck.

“While the responsibility of having a job might be more valuable than having a paycheck, the reward of the paycheck will allow these youth who want to have a job to possibly save for a car, maybe buy a prom dress, go to a summer camp, take a date out for the weekend,” Dickey said, Des Moines Register reported.

The Bill

Under the new bill, 14- to 17-year-olds would be allowed to work in jobs that are currently off-limits for minors so long as the directors of the Iowa Department of Education or Iowa Workforce Development grant exceptions. The exception would require the minors to be part of an approved training program with adequate supervision and safety precautions.

Senate Republicans approved amendments to the bill made early Tuesday to clarify that 16- and 17-year-olds would be prohibited from serving alcohol at strip clubs, even though current law bans them from working at strip clubs.

The bill would also allow teens to work longer hours until 9 p.m. during the school year and until 11 p.m. during the summer. It would further create a committee to study the possibility of allowing minors aged 14 and older to obtain a special driver’s permit to drive to work.

Furthermore, the bill grants protections to minors who are injured on the job under the state’s workers’ compensation program. Previously, the bill did not provide such protections.

The bill also removes provisions in current law that allow children ages 10 to 13 to work in street occupations like selling newspapers or migratory labor conditions.