Tipton Holds Hearing on Proposed DOL Agriculture Youth Labor Rule

February 2, 2012

Tipton Holds Hearing on Proposed DOL Agriculture Youth Labor Rule
“Simply tweaking this rule is not the answer. It should be thrown out in its entirety.”

WASHINGTON— House Small Business Subcommittee on Agriculture, Energy and Trade Chairman Scott Tipton (R-CO) today held a hearing to examine proposed Department of Labor (DOL) rulemaking that would make revisions to existing regulations pertaining to the employment of youth on farming and ranching operations.

Yesterday, the Department of Labor decided to re-propose the “parental exemption” portion of this rule. However, great concern remains about other parts of the rule pertaining to youth access to safety training programs and on-farm education and employment opportunities.

Nancy Leppink, Deputy Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division at DOL, testified at the hearing. U.S. Congressman Denny Rehberg (R-MT), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Service, and Education, also participated.

The rule, as proposed, not only upends long-standing and proven programs that provide important safety training and instruction to youth, it could also prohibit youth from working on their own family farms simply because of the way the farm’s business is structured.

“Working on the farm has been part of growing up in rural America for generations,” said Tipton. “It’s clear from DOL’s late decision to re-propose parts of this rule that it is being pushed by Washington bureaucrats who don’t know the first thing about agriculture. This rule affects real farmers, real jobs and real youth that will be the future of agriculture production here in America— that must be understood.

“The federal government’s own statistics and analysis show that between 1998-2009 nonfatal farm-related accidents involving youth have declined by more than 50 percent, which begs the question about what is the problem that the Obama Administration is trying to solve. This is just another example of the administration’s ‘government knows best’ attitude that is crushing the economy with unwarranted regulations.

“Our witnesses were loud and clear—simply tweaking this rule is not the answer. It should be thrown out in its entirety.”

For related hearing documents, click here.

Notable Witness Quotes:

Chris Chinn, Owner of Chinn Hog Farm in Clarence, MO, said, “DOL clearly does not understand the farming community, does not understand how farms are organized, how farm families help one another, does not appreciate or grasp what it is like to live in rural America, nor does the department seem to have much respect for the ability of farmers and ranchers to look out for the well-being of their children.”

Kent Schescke, Director of Strategic Partnerships at National Future Farmers of America in Alexandria, VA, explained the effect the rule would have on classroom instruction. “[We] are concerned about the limits these rules provide on the ability and opportunities for our students to learn by doing. ‘Learning by doing’ is a critical part of the preparation and education through which we prepare students for careers in agriculture and related occupations.”