Maine Republicans Want To Weaken Child Labor Laws

The Republican war on labor continues in Maine, where Republican legislators want to weaken child labor laws.

…under a new piece of legislation introduced in the state’s House of Representatives, employers would be able to pay anyone under the age of 20 as little as $5.25 an hour for their first 180 days on the job.

The bill, LD 1346, also eliminates the maximum number of hours a minor 16 years of age or older can work on a school day and allows a minor under the age of 16 to work up to four hours on a school day during hours when school is not in session.

With a unemployment in Maine above 7%, Democrats want to know why creating a pool of cheap labor makes any sense.

The state Senate is also currently considering a bill (LD 516) that would allow 16- and 17-year-old students to work until 11:00 p.m. on school nights. Currently, they’re allowed to work until 10:00 p.m. It would also allow students to work for a total of 24 hours per week, four more than current law allows. Senators on the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee are split along party lines on the bill, but it’s likely to pass when the full body votes on it–the Senate, like the House, is controlled by Republicans.

Maine is the state that just recently had a mural honoring labor removed from the lobby of the State Department of Labor.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.