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Florida teenagers may soon be able to work longer Sundays after a significantly watered-down bill passed the state Legislature.
When HB 49 was first proposed, it always repealed the guidelines regulating when 16- and 17-year-olds could work.
However, the final version of the bill maintains most existing laws, including restrictions on teens working before 6:30 a.m. or after 11 p.m. when school is scheduled the next day.
The bill primarily affects 16- and 17-year-olds who are homeschooled or virtually schooled and exempts them from all regulations regarding the hours teens can work.
Sen. Danny Burgess (R-Zephyrhills), who passed the bill in the Senate, said that was his main appeal. Burgess’ children are homeschooled, and homeschoolers sometimes finish the day earlier than in traditional schools, he said.
Currently, teenagers who have already graduated, work for their parents, or have hardship exemptions are also exempt from the law regarding when they can work.
Some Democrats said while they appreciate how the bill has been amended, they still have concerns about how it exempts home-schooled students.
Rep. Robin Bartleman (D-Weston) said she hopes Congress will come back and tweak the language regarding home-schooled children.
“You’re now putting children in a situation where parents and guardians can exploit them and force them to work just like adults,” she says.
If Gov. Ron DeSantis signs the bill, other 16- and 17-year-olds would be limited to eight hours of work the day before school, excluding Sundays and holidays.
Teenagers’ work hours would also be limited to 30 hours per week during the school year, but the bill would change the law to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to work seven consecutive days. A parent, guardian, or school superintendent can waive a student’s 30-hour limit if they complete an approved form.
Throughout the 60-day legislative process, the child labor bill was mired in controversy, with members of the public voicing their opposition to the bill at each stage.
However, after the Florida Senate revised the bill into its final version, a spokesperson for the AFL-CIO union, which had previously opposed the bill, said it supported the bill.
The Florida Policy Institute also strongly opposed the bill, saying the final version of the bill poses fewer risks to the health and safety of teens.
But Sadaf Knight, the group’s CEO, said in a statement that employers could exempt home-schooled teens from child labor laws by allowing them to schedule night shifts. There were still concerns about how to allow them, saying it would “put their education and welfare at risk”.
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