The U.S. Department of Labor's proposed revisions to child-labor rules have some wondering what will happen to FFA and 4-H programs if children under 16 can no longer work except on farms owned by their parents. Ty Walter, an FFA member and freshman at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne, Wyo., told The Fence Post he would hate to see the rules take affect because they may take away the hands-on learning experience for many students.
The proposal would "prohibit child agricultural work with animals, along with pesticides, timber, manure pits and storage bins," Eric Brown writes. "The restrictions would also include barring children younger than 16 from operating most power-driven equipment, and all youth in both agricultural and non-agricultural work from using electronic devices while operating such equipment. Grain elevators and bins, silos, feed lots, stockyards and livestock exchanges and auctions would be off limits to non-agricultural workers younger than 18."
Jarrod Bessire, FFA adviser for Briggsdale School, 35 miles northeast of Greeley, Colo., told Brown that if the new rules pass many of his students may not be able to complete their livestock and crop-based projects unless they live on a farm owned only by their parents. "We all agree that kids -- and everyone else, for that matter -- need to be as safe as possible, but we need to make sure we're still providing good experiences for kids, whether it comes through FFA or 4-H, and a good foundation in agriculture," Bessire added. (Read more)
Other opponents of the proposed rules say limiting work to parents' property would ignore the fact that many farms involve grandparents and grandchildren. The comment period for the proposal has been extended to Dec. 1. The next step is for the Labor Department to propose a final version.
The proposal would "prohibit child agricultural work with animals, along with pesticides, timber, manure pits and storage bins," Eric Brown writes. "The restrictions would also include barring children younger than 16 from operating most power-driven equipment, and all youth in both agricultural and non-agricultural work from using electronic devices while operating such equipment. Grain elevators and bins, silos, feed lots, stockyards and livestock exchanges and auctions would be off limits to non-agricultural workers younger than 18."
Jarrod Bessire, FFA adviser for Briggsdale School, 35 miles northeast of Greeley, Colo., told Brown that if the new rules pass many of his students may not be able to complete their livestock and crop-based projects unless they live on a farm owned only by their parents. "We all agree that kids -- and everyone else, for that matter -- need to be as safe as possible, but we need to make sure we're still providing good experiences for kids, whether it comes through FFA or 4-H, and a good foundation in agriculture," Bessire added. (Read more)
Other opponents of the proposed rules say limiting work to parents' property would ignore the fact that many farms involve grandparents and grandchildren. The comment period for the proposal has been extended to Dec. 1. The next step is for the Labor Department to propose a final version.
No comments:
Post a Comment