The CARE Act of 2024 significantly strengthens federal protections for child workers, particularly those in agriculture. The bill raises the minimum working age for most agricultural jobs from 14 to 16 years old, while allowing younger children to work only on family farms outside school hours. It also bans all children under 18 from handling pesticides, a particularly hazardous task, and eliminates an existing waiver that allowed younger children to perform hand-harvesting work. The legislation extends child labor protections to independent contractors, closing a loophole that previously allowed businesses to avoid these rules by classifying young workers as contractors rather than employees.
The bill significantly increases penalties for child labor violations, with civil penalties ranging from $1,000 to $156,290 per worker for standard violations, and up to $710,310 per violation when a child is seriously injured or killed. These penalties can be doubled for repeated or willful violations. The law also establishes new criminal penalties of up to $750,000 in fines and five years of imprisonment for aggravated child labor violations. The Department of Labor must implement these changes and issue new regulations within one year of enactment, and agencies must begin coordinating enforcement efforts through a new information-sharing agreement. Additionally, the bill requires annual reports to Congress on child labor and work-related injuries to children, helping track compliance and identify ongoing violations.
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