A bill that would significantly increase both civil and criminal penalties for employers found to have violated child labor laws received a favorable report Wednesday in the House Judiciary Committee.
Senate Bill 119, sponsored by Sen. Robert Stewart, D-Selma, would increase civil penalties for two categories of child labor law violations.
The first category, which includes employing someone under 16 in a prohibited occupation, allowing anyone under legal drinking age to serve alcoholic beverages, or employing a minor in unsanitary conditions, would see civil penalties increase from a flat $300 fine, to a fine of at least $300.
For the second category, which includes more serious child labor law violations such as employing minors under 16 to operate dangerous machinery, or employing minors in the adult entertainment industry, civil penalties would be increased from $1,000 to $5,000, to between $5,000 and $10,000.
Employers found in violation of certain child labor laws would face harsher criminal penalties as well under the bill.
Were a violation of child labor laws by an employer to have caused serious injury or death to an individual, the charge for a first-time offense would be raised from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class C felony. Second and subsequent violations would be elevated from a Class C felony to a Class B felony, punishable with up to 20 years in prison.
“Some of our current state fines for child labor violations are just $300, and these are less than many people pay for basic driving violations,” Stewart said to committee members.
“This bill is really to address crimes against children, that is what this is about. Just in this last month in Cullman County, we had a 15 year old fall off a roof and die because he cracked his skull, and so we need to be protecting children in this state. This is a nationwide trend; we had a janitorial company in Tennessee that had children clean dangerous equipment in slaughterhouses.”
Stewart later told Alabama Daily News that he had engaged with the Alabama Department of Labor when crafting the bill, and that the department was in favor of the proposal.
The bill ultimately saw unanimous support from members of the Judiciary Committee.
The bill had originally included harsher civil penalties for less serious violations of child labor laws. In its original form, the bill read that the state “shall impose a civil penalty of $1,000” for certain violations.
When the bill appeared on the Alabama Senate floor in late March, however, Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, added an amendment that changed “shall” to “may,” giving discretion to whether or not an employer is fined when found in violation of certain child labor laws, and lowered the civil penalty from $1,000 to “not less than $300.”
In the Senate, Orr had sponsored legislation of his own related to child labor. His bill would make it easier for 14 and 15 year old teens to secure employment by removing a mandate that an Alabamian under 16 must receive approval from their school to work.
The number of illegally employed children and teens in the United States has increased in recent years, increasing by more than 49% in 2023 when compared to the previous year according to the U.S. Department of Labor. A total of 5,729 young workers were discovered to be illegally employed in 2023, compared to 3,876 in 2022.
Notable examples in Alabama include workers as young as 12 discovered to have been employed by major suppliers for Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation. Those violations led to fines against the suppliers – which includes the Alexander City-based manufacturer SL Alabama – of between $17,800 and $30,076.