MONTGOMERY, Ala. — With a new bill, Rep. Susan DuBose, R-Hoover, is hoping to further “eliminate barriers to employment” for 14- and 15- year-old Alabamians, who under federal and state law, are subject to several restrictions when it comes to holding employment.
Under existing law, Alabamians age 14 and 15 may hold a job, though are limited to working no more than 40 hours a week, or 18 hours while in school.
Those work-hour limitations are federal law, while under state law, the teens are required to receive permission from both their parent or legal guardian, as well as an administrator, counselor or teacher at the school they attend.
Under the legislation, the teens would no longer require the approval of a representative of their school to secure employment, something DuBose argued could help improve the state’s low labor participation rate.
“We have a really low workforce participation rate, 57.2% of the people in Alabama are not participating in the workforce, (and) it’s even worse among young people ages 16 to 24; we have the lowest (youth) workforce participation rate in the whole nation,” DuBose told Alabama Daily News Monday.
“There’s 100,000 young people between the ages of 18 and 24 that don’t work at all, and they’re not students, so my question is, what are those 100,000 people doing? So the thinking behind this is to allow young people, should they and their parents choose, the opportunity to work on a limited basis.”
Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, is sponsoring the Senate version of the legislation. It was approved by the Senate Children and Youth Health Committee on Thursday and could get a vote in the Senate next week.
“It takes the government out of giving you permission, or your child permission, if they want to have an after-school job at age 14 or 15,” Orr said. “They shouldn’t have to go to the government to get permission.”
Orr said he understands why the law might have been needed previously, but called it archaic. If a student is doing poorly in school, it should be the parent telling him to study rather than work their part-time job, he said.
The legislation closely mirrors one of the policies advocated for by the conservative think tank Alabama Policy Institute in its 2024 policy agenda, dubbed the “2024 Blueprint for Alabama.”
“Learning new skills and building a strong work ethic from an early age is a benefit to not only Alabama’s children but can also provide additional laborers to the state’s workforce, improving the quality of life for all citizens,” the API wrote.
“Whether a 14 or 15 year old is mature and responsible enough to work while also attending school should be decided by the child and their parents, not school administrators.”
Not all Alabama organizations were supportive of the proposal.
Apreill Hartsfield, policy and data analyst for VOICES for Alabama’s Children, a nonprofit child advocacy organization, told ADN that the organization had been closely monitoring the bill since its filing, and has several concerns.
“If they are not able to have the grades that they need before they go into the workforce, that raises some concerns about (whether) they are still going to be able to do good at school if they have a job,” Hartsfield said.
“That’s one of our concerns, but the other is (that) child labor laws are in place to protect our youth. While there are benefits of allowing them to work, what we are concerned about is that if we take this step, this is just the first step in maybe reversing some of those protections that are in place for our children and youth.”
While unemployment in Alabama remains among the lowest in the nation, the state’s labor participation rate – which unlike the unemployment rate, tracks the number of those unemployed regardless of if they’re seeking employment – is among the highest in the nation. Furthermore, for Alabamians aged 16 to 24, a survey found that just 18% are employed, the lowest youth labor participation rate in the nation.
State leaders have poured significant resources in recent months into researching why Alabama’s labor participation rate has slipped so low, culminating with the unveiling of a new “transformative” workforce development plan set to materialize as several bills in the coming weeks.
While admitting that her bill wouldn’t make a massive dent in the state’s low labor participation rate, DuBose said it was more about moving the needle in the right direction, while also granting Alabama teens more opportunity to gain “invaluable experience” that comes with employment.
“It would give them an opportunity to work at a fast food restaurant, a retail establishment, or any safe area that honestly, needs workers right now; there are hiring signs out everywhere,” she said.
“I know I personally started working at age 15, and it provided invaluable experience for me. We also know that the sooner individuals start to work, the more likely they are to be successful in life.”
Alabama Daily News’ Mary Sell contributed to this report.