The National Federation of Independent Businesses has been using the labor shortage justification to push child labor laws. Iowa lawmakers are considering Republican legislation that would allow 14 to 15 year olds to work in industrial laundry services and freezers at meatpacking plants. It also prevent many of them from receiving workers compensation if they were injured or killed on the job. Republicans and Democrats in Ohio are considering removing a cap on the number of hours children as young as 14 can work during school year with a guardian who approves.
In this public News Brief, we detail how uncritical acceptance by centrist––and even liberal––media that the US is seeing an unprecedented "labor shortage" is helping justify repealing child labor protections in roughly a dozen states.