SF 167 was introduced by State Sen. Jason Schultz in 2023 with the aims of lifting restrictions on hazardous work; lowering age for alcohol services; extending work hours; granting employer immunity from civil liability for workplace injuries, illness, death.
Defending the bill, Governor Kim Reynolds stated:
“With this legislation Iowa joins 20 other states in providing tailored, common sense labor provisions that allow young adults to develop their skills in the workforce.”
While the bill progressed through the state legislature, opponents argued that it could not only endanger the safety of children but would also target teens from lower-income and minority backgrounds.
Iowa’s proposed bill has generated national headlines for being particularly extreme. It would allow children to work in slaughterhouses, meatpacking or rendering plants; mining; operating power-driven metal forming, punching or shearing machines; operating band or circular saws, guillotine shears or paper balers; or being involved in roofing operations or demolition work, as well as allow 14- and 15-year-olds to work in freezers and meat coolers.
The bill also seeks to create special permits that would allow 14-year-olds to drive themselves up to 50 miles to and from work between 5:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m, and devoid businesses of any civil liability if the minor is injured traveling to or from work.
Other deeply disturbing proposals in the bill include removing rules that bar parents from making false statements (such as misreporting a child’s age) in order to procure employment that violates child labor law; eliminating the labor commissioner’s authority to require work permits for children in some occupations; granting new discretion for the state to waive, reduce, or delay civil penalties if an employer violates child labor laws; and providing employer immunity from legal claims arising from the injury, illness, or death of a child while at work.
Published: February 2024