Jefferson City — State Sen. Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown, announced today that the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has extended its comment period on proposed changes to child labor laws on farms. “Child labor laws have been around since the 1930s, and DOL is recommending the first sweeping changes in 40 years,” Sen. Munzlinger said. “Unfortunately, the proposed recommendations essentially make it illegal for anyone under 18 to do anything on a farm.” DOL’s proposal could affect Missouri farming operations by: • Restricting the “Parental Exemption” rule so that farms operated by partnerships and corporations may not benefit. As a result, the rule does not take into account the ownership patterns and operations of family farms because many family farms involve different members and generations of the same family working on the farm. DOL wants to limit the “family farm” exemption solely to the children of the owner or operator of a farm. Other family youth — nieces, nephews or grandchildren — would be restricted in what jobs they could do on the family farm by this rule. • Affecting standard education and training for future farmers by reducing on-the-farm learning opportunities. A student-learner on a farm must satisfactorily complete at least 90 hours of systematic school instruction in agricultural education at or above the 8th grade level before working on the farm — and even then the exemption would only apply to power-driven equipment. • Prohibiting young hired workers from engaging and assisting in many animal husbandry practices to include those that inflict pain upon the animal and/or are likely to result in unpredictable animal behavior such as, but not limited to, branding, breeding, dehorning, vaccinating, castrating and treating sick or injured animals. The prohibition would also include herding animals in confined spaces, such as feed lots or corrals; on horseback; or using motorized vehicles, such as trucks or all-terrain vehicles. “As far as I’m concerned, this is an attack on 4-H, FFA and all family farms. This is another example of a Washington, D.C. bureaucracy making changes they want without going through the legislative process,” Sen. Munzlinger said. “As a father and family farmer, I put the safety of my children and others at the top of list. However, these are rules coming from people who don’t understand rural agriculture or the traditions built through family farming.” Comments may be submitted by U.S. mail to: Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Department of Labor, Room S–3502, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20210. Please include identification number RIN 1235-AA06 in the letter. To submit comments electronically, please go towww.regulations.gov and type WHD-2011-0001-0001 in the “Enter Keyword or ID” box to find the proposed rule and comment page. It will be the only proposed rule that appears. Please click on “Submit a Comment” on the right side of the screen. |