REVISE YOUTH WORK STANDARDS
House Bill 4875
Sponsor: Rep. Tony Stamas
Committee: Commerce
Complete to 11-8-02
A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 4875 AS INTRODUCED 6-5-01
House Bill 4875 would amend the Youth Employment Standards Act to allow 16- and 17-year-old students to work up to 24 hours per week, with the written consent of a parent or guardian, or 20 hours per week, without consent, while school is in session. The bill would also lift certain other restrictions on the maximum hours of week that may be worked by, and the mandatory ending hour for work performed by, 16- and 17-year-olds (regardless of whether they are students). The current law and proposed changes are summarized in detail below.
Generally, the act restricts 16- and 17- year-olds employed in occupations subject to the act from working more than six days in one week, a period longer than a weekly average of eight hours per day or 48 hours in one week, or more than ten hours in one day. The act restricts 16- and 17-year-old students from having a combined school and work week of more than 48 hours, while school is in session. Generally, the act also imposes an ending hour of 10:30 p.m. for 16- and 17-year-olds who are not students; however, 16- and 17-year-olds who are students may work until 11:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, during school vacation periods, and during periods when they are not regularly enrolled in school. The act creates an exception to both the maximum number of work hours and the mandatory ending hour for 16- and 17-year-olds who are employed in farming operations involved either in the production of seed or in agricultural processing, under specific conditions.
The bill would allow 16- and 17-year-old students to work up to 20 hours per week (without consent) or 24 hours per week (with consent), during the period school is in session. Further, the bill would extend the exception for 16- and 17-year-olds employed in the specified farming operations for periods beyond the number of work hours and periods beyond the ending hour to 16- and 17-year-olds employed in any line of work. To qualify, all of the following conditions would have to be met. First, if the minor was a student in school, the period in which he or she worked more than the maximum number of hours or beyond the ending hour would have to occur when school was not in session. Second, he or she could be employed for not more than 11 hours in one day. Third, he or she could not be employed for more than 62 hours in one week and could not be required to work for more than 48 hours in a week, unless he or she consented. Fourth, he or she could not be employed between 2 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. Fifth, the employer would have to maintain on file a written acknowledgment of the minor's parent or guardian consenting to the period of employment extending beyond the number of work hours or ending hour generally allowed.
MCL 409.111
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This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.