Sponsors (3)
Adds a safe harbor preventing an "oppressive child labor" finding solely for youth who work ≤24 hours per school week and only between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.
The bill increases scheduling flexibility and clearer safe-harbor rules so students can earn more and employers face less enforcement risk, but it reduces federal enforcement discretion and may permit harmful or exploitative youth schedules, with potential health impacts and displacement of older workers.
Students and other young workers can legally work up to 24 hours per week during 7 a.m.–9 p.m. while school is in session, letting them earn more income and take on evening/early-morning shifts without triggering Department of Labor "oppressive hours" enforcement.
Employers gain clearer, predictable rules about permissible youth scheduling (safe-harbor hours), reducing compliance uncertainty and the risk of penalties or enforcement actions for hiring students.
Lower compliance risk for hiring students can reduce administrative costs and potential enforcement-related expenses for businesses that rely on youth workers.
Students and young workers may lose protection because narrowing Department of Labor enforcement discretion could allow exploitative or harmful scheduling practices that meet the new hour/time thresholds.
Students working for multiple employers could accumulate long overall schedules (even if each employer complies), increasing fatigue and harming health and school performance.
Employers may schedule youth aggressively up to the safe-harbor limits, intensifying competition for shifts and potentially displacing older or adult workers in entry-level jobs.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Official title: To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to expand working hours for employees between the ages of 14 and 16 years during periods in which schools are in session, and for other purposes.
Introduced May 21, 2025 by Dustin Johnson · Last progress May 21, 2025
Narrows federal labor enforcement for certain teenage workers by creating a safe harbor for youth work schedules. The bill amends federal child labor rules so the Secretary of Labor cannot deem hours worked oppressive if a youth works 24 hours or less in any week when school is in session and works only between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time.