Since 1973 and the signing of the fundamental ILO (International Labour Organisation) Convention No. 138 on the minimum age for admission to employment, the prohibition of child labour — or at least its strict control — has been considered a social achievement in many countries, and one that it seems difficult to go back on. Under this convention, any member that ratifies it must specify a minimum age for admission to employment or work on its territory, below which no person should be authorised to work in any occupation. Depending on the 176 signatory countries, the age limit varies between 14 and 16. It should be pointed out, however, that the Convention allows national legislation to authorise, under certain conditions, the performance of light work from the age of 13 (or 12 in the case of developing countries that have set the minimum age for admission to employment at 14).
In the light of these international regulations, the House Bill 1410, signed by the Republican Governor of Arkansas, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, in March 2023, has caused quite a stir. The bill aims to make it easier to hire minors by exempting children under the age of 16 from having to provide proof of age in order to be recruited. While this may come as a shock at first, it should be remembered that the United States is one of the few countries not to have ratified Convention 138. It should also be noted that this new law is not simply an isolated act, but part of a more global trend.
One ban and many exceptions
Since the adoption of the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1938, minors under the age of 14 have not been allowed to work in the United States, while those under the age of 18 cannot be assigned dangerous jobs. But there are many exceptions. For example, minors of any age may deliver newspapers, take part in radio, television, film or theatre productions, or work for their parents in a business owned solely by them (except in mining, manufacturing or dangerous work).
Agriculture is an even greater exception to federal law. In this sector, authorised jobs and working hours vary according to age: minors aged 16 or over may carry out any kind of work, whether dangerous or not, for an unlimited number of hours; minors aged 14 and 15 may carry out any non-hazardous agricultural work outside school hours; minors aged 12 and 13 may work outside school hours in non-hazardous jobs, either with the written consent of a parent or on their own farm. Minors under the age of 12 may work on farms owned by their parents, or on small family farms with parental consent.
