HR3139 Youth Worker Protection Act - Unbelievable!

National Home Education Legal Defense ^

[Tired of Taxes]

Bulletin #22 HR3139 - legislation which will affect your homeschooled teen

Did you know?: HR3139 Youth Worker Protection Act will make teenagers unemployable.

HR3139 Youth Worker Protection Act ("Working-Hour Restrictions for Minors") was introduced by Congressman Tom Lantos (CA) in September 2003. One of the goals of this bill is to seriously restrict the hours a teen may work. For example, 16 and 17 year olds will not be permitted to work more than 4 hours per day, or 20 hours per week. Teens aged 14-15 will be limited to 3 hours per day, or 15 hours per week. This bill will also severely restrict what jobs teenagers can do. It will also federally require your child to obtain a worker permit from a local school.

Right now the bill is "in committee" in the Committee on Education and the Workforce and, the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections. Congress comes back into session on January 20th, so it isn't certain how fast this bill will move out of committee, but it is currently being supported by the NEA (National Education Association), and the AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations).

Under this legislation, the term "school-age minor" means a minor who, as determined under the law applicable to the school district in which the minor lives, has not earned a high school diploma or other document of equivalent or greater status.

Under this legislation this is a sampling of work that a 'school age minor' would not be permitted to do:

mow lawns

paint houses

work in any retail establishment that has a ladder over 6 feet tall

operate or be around deep fryer machines - found in most fast food eateries

sell newspapers or any other materials door to door (unless it is for a school PTA)

operate or be around trash compacters found in supermarkets and other stores

operate or be around food slicers - found in most grocery deli departments and bakeries

operate or be around power equipment

drive any kind of vehicle

This kind of legislation severely limits how teenagers can earn money. This is especially detrimental for kids who wish to save money for college.

Another provision of this legislation requires that kids obtain working papers at their local school. It also allows the school to revoke the permission to work. Homeschoolers, and any other teenager, should not have to rely on the public schools for this kind of permission. If employers need proof of age, all they need to do is require prospective employees to present a valid birth certificate. The public school should not be involved in the employment process at all.

Schools are adopting School to Work apprenticeship programs, which "supervise" a student's employment. Since homeschoolers do not participate in School to Work programs, this may also give homeschooled teens a disadvantage in terms of the amount of time they are allowed to work versus the amount of time that teens attending school may work. This is of concern because public schooled teens "work time" may be included in their public school hours. We can see where this is all leading. Kids will not be able to work unless they are enrolled in school. Whatever work they do will be "supervised" through the school.

This also looks like a way for the unions to get rid of teens in places like fast food establishments and other retail stores so that they can hike up wages.

We recommend that anyone interested in this legislation, should read the text of this bill in its entirety for a complete understanding. The bill is available at http://thomas.loc.gov/. Find out what your own state labor laws say too. Contact your legislative representatives and let them know how you feel about this bill.

[Tired of Taxes]

I did a search here, but nothing for HR3139 came up on Free Republic. The above message was circulated on a homeschool forum, and it appears to be coming from NHELD.

[DMCA]

Well we have to open up more jobs for the future blue-card holders somehow.

[WarEagle]

Here's a link to the text of the bill in Thomas:

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/F?c108:1:./temp/~c108PUy5MI:e1475:

[Boxsford]

My comment may be a bit off topic but I'm wondering if there isn't something in the works, nationally, concerning minor workers in general. For example here in PA there was a new law passed that states anyone born after 1990 cannot get their drivers license until the age of 18 years old. That is going to severely limit the workforce among teenagers.

[hollywood]

This also looks like a way for the unions to get rid of teens in places like fast food establishments and other retail stores so that they can hike up wages.

Along the lines of that suspicion, someone recently told me that the purpose of school attendance requirements for children was not for the good of the children, but to help more adults have jobs.

[Boxsford]

This also looks like a way for the unions to get rid of teens in places like fast food establishments and other retail stores so that they can hike up wages.

This is what I was thinking too. I'm not so sure this is a homeschooling issue as much as an issue with getting minors out of the workforce or severely limiting them.

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. NORTON, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. OLVER, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. OWENS, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. CLAY, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. TIERNEY, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. MATSUI, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. FROST, Mr. RUSH, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. BERMAN, and Ms. WATERS)

Any rinos?

[cyborg]

Kids aren't lazy. I get kids coming into the store asking for work because they want to buy clothes,etc. computer games,etc. They're too young to be hired by McDonald's, etc. This really sucks. Unions are giving themselves a really bad name.

[Spacemonkey1023]

Tell me about it. Us young'uns need jobs like these to learn the work ethic, value of the dollar, and to have some things to put on a resume to try and get an entry-level position sometime in the future. This'll just take away from that and make it all the harder to get jobs in the future because of a lack of experience.

[rwfromkansas]

I would not have a problem with the hour changes.

But, the rest of the stuff...that is plain wrong if true!

Luckily, those provisions would not survive in any case.

[cyborg]

My boss has her son work in the store. He's still in high school. What about people who employ their kids??? More government crapola... that's the last thing we need.

[HamiltonJay]

Honestly,

You kids need to learn how to make money, not WORK..... Most adults don't know how to make money, nearly everyone knows how to work. Learn the difference and you will be wealthier than you ever imagined, and never have to answer to a boss, and can even teach your parents a thing or two...

I am not opposed to hard work, but invest your time in learning how money works, and you'll be far better off in the long run than working some part time job.

Just some food for thought.

[Spacemonkey1023]

Well, I'd debate that nearly everyone knows how to work. A lot of people I know have things too easy and lack a work ethic, or an appreciation for fiscal responsibility for that matter. As for the rest, I agree with you 100%

[It's me]

For example, 16 and 17 year olds will not be permitted to work more than 4 hours per day, or 20 hours per week. Teens aged 14-15 will be limited to 3 hours per day, or 15 hours per week.

GOOD! These kids should be at home studying and doing homework! When they do well in school then they will be able to get better jobs after tech school or college.
Summertime is the time for kids to work not during the school year.

[The Westerner]

Unbelievable. But Lantos usually does something that brings back memories of the Nazi era.

[supercat]

Looking briefly at the bill in question, this article seems to be inaccurate in some key regards. For example, newspaper delivery seems to be explicitly excluded from the definition of "youth peddling" provided that the papers are delivered to the purchaser's home. That doesn't mean one shouldn't oppose this legislation, but one shouldn't spread untruths about legislation in an effort to oppose it.

[ppaul]

Yeah.
State of the Union.
Don't let boys work.
Let 'em be feminized.
Get loans. Go to college.
Get out with a decree after five or six years - useless.
In debt. No real work skills.
Let 'em spend their summers and after schools workin' as bus boys - or not at all.
Let 'em get girls pregnant and learn new skateboard tricks.
That's the society we're building.
And, President Bush said that the "resident workers" will only work the jobs Americans aren't willing to take.
Let's make it illegal for the ones that would be willing to take them - teenage boys.
Can anyone say juvenile delinquency?

[ppaul]

These kids should be at home studying and doing homework!

Horsesh*t!

[Byron_the_Aussie]

Will illegal immigrants comply with this?

[GodBlessUSA]

Yes, but that shouldn't be up to the government to determine. That's where I have the problem. I still have to read the link provided of the exact legislation.

You are correct. There's no way my son can work during the school year. He has plenty of homework and studying to do. But that's my decision not the government dictating it.
The summer, however, is a different story.

I know a young girl who is now 18. At 16 she started to work at McDonalds. She still studied her heart out and by the time she was 17, she got promoted at McD’s. She has no father around willing to help. She has saved a lot of money. She just brought a car. She graduated early and is taking a college course now. This spring she is going to Europe to see the world for vacation, with some of her money saved. Then she will get back to school and work. I'm proud of her. Will this legislation discourage this? That's the question I have. It sounds like it will.