II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4038 

To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to strengthen the provisions 

relating to child labor, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 21, 2024 

Mr. LUJA ́N introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to 

strengthen the provisions relating to child labor, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Children’s Act for Re5 sponsible Employment and Farm Safety of 2024’’ or the 

6 ‘‘CARE Act of 2024’’. 

7 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

8 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Findings. 


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TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT 

OF 1938 

Sec. 101. Application of child labor laws to independent contractors. 

Sec. 102. Revised age requirement for child agricultural employment and exemptions for hazardous and non-hazardous work. 

Sec. 103. Repeal of waiver provision for hand harvest laborers. 

Sec. 104. Pesticide-related worker protection standard. 

TITLE II—PENALTIES AND ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 201. Increased civil penalties for child labor violations. 

Sec. 202. Special criminal penalties for certain aggravated child labor violations. 

TITLE III—REPORTS AND MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING 

Sec. 301. Report to Congress on child labor and work-related injuries to children and related matters. 

Sec. 302. Employer reporting requirements. 

Sec. 303. Memorandum of understanding. 

TITLE IV—EFFECTIVE DATES 

Sec. 401. Effective date for application of child labor laws to independent contractors. 

Sec. 402. Application of other fair labor standards amendments. 

Sec. 403. Application of Occupational Safety and Health Act amendments. 

1 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Across the United States, there are hun4 dreds of thousands of children who are working in 

5 the agricultural industry and performing the gruel6 ing work that is required to plant, pick, process, and 

7 pack the food that people eat every day. 

8 (2) Congress included exemptions to the Fair 

9 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et 

10 seq.) child labor provisions that create separate min11 imum age thresholds and hazardous occupations 

12 rules for children employed in agriculture. Such Act 

13 does not limit the number of hours per day or week 


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1 that children can work in agriculture, nor does it 

2 place limits on when that work occurs outside of 

3 school hours (i.e., children may work in agriculture 

4 for any number of hours per day or week, and at 

5 any time during the day or night). 

6 (3) Historically, children have been permitted to 

7 work in agriculture at younger ages, for longer 

8 hours, and under more hazardous conditions than 

9 other working children. Like most other agricultural 

10 workers, children remain excluded from basic protec11 tions provided to workers in other industries under 

12 Federal employment laws. Even where protections 

13 exist under Federal law, Federal agencies lack suffi14 cient resources to conduct investigations and hold 

15 employers accountable for violations. 

16 (4) Allowing children to engage in agricultural 

17 work from a young age can result in long-term nega18 tive consequences, especially when the child worker 

19 is not employed on a family farm where family mem20 bers take precautions for their children and family 

21 members. Working in agriculture as a child can re22 sult in an early end to childhood, and long hours 

23 worked at unfair and unlawful wages can pose risks 

24 to their overall health, education, and lives. 


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1 (5) Child farmworkers suffer work-related fa2 talities at more than 4 times the rate of other young 

3 workers and, according to a 2018 report by the Gov4 ernment Accountability Office, more than half of all 

5 work-related child fatalities are in the agriculture in6 dustry, often because exceptions are made that allow 

7 farmworker children to operate heavy, dangerous 

8 equipment and to be exposed to other hazards. Yet, 

9 great efforts have been taken to strictly limit the 

10 possibility of children in other industries from en11 gaging in dangerous work activities or jobs. The de12 mands imposed by doing agricultural work, coupled 

13 with the low pay and poor working conditions, result 

14 in shocking drop-out rates from school for child 

15 farmworkers. Aside from these risks, farmworker 

16 children are exceptionally vulnerable to sexual abuse 

17 and harassment by supervisors, company owners, 

18 crew leaders, co-workers, and others. 

19 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE 

20 FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT 

21 OF 1938 

22 SEC. 101. APPLICATION OF CHILD LABOR LAWS TO INDE23 PENDENT CONTRACTORS. 

24 The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

25 201 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) in section 3 (29 U.S.C. 203)— 

2 (A) in subsection (d)— 

3 (i) by striking ‘‘ ‘Employer’ includes’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘(1) ‘Employer’ includes’’; 

5 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

6 any child labor provision of this Act, in7 cluding paragraph (2), subsection (aa), 

8 section 12, and any provision of this Act 

9 administering or enforcing such a child 

10 labor provision, a worker)’’ after ‘‘em11 ployee’’; and 

12 (iii) by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding any other provision in this sec15 tion, for purposes of any child labor provision of this Act, 

16 including subsections (l) and (aa), section 12, and any 

17 provision of this Act administering or enforcing such a 

18 child labor provision, the term ‘employer’ includes any per19 son engaging an individual (including an independent con20 tractor) for the performance of work.’’; 

21 (B) in subsection (j)— 

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

23 any child labor provision of this Act, in24 cluding section 12 and any provision of 

25 this Act administering or enforcing such a 


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1 child labor provision, worker)’’ after ‘‘em2 ployee’’ each place it appears; and 

3 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

4 any child labor provision of this Act, in5 cluding section 12 and any provision of 

6 this Act administering or enforcing such a 

7 child labor provision, engaged for work)’’ 

8 after ‘‘was employed’’; 

9 (C) in subsection (l)— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘employment under’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘work under’’; 

12 (ii) by striking ‘‘employee’’ each place 

13 it appears and inserting ‘‘worker’’; 

14 (iii) by striking ‘‘is employed by’’ each 

15 place it appears and inserting ‘‘performs 

16 work for’’; 

17 (iv) by striking ‘‘employing’’ and in18 serting ‘‘engaging for work’’; 

19 (v) by striking ‘‘employment of’’ each 

20 place it appears and inserting ‘‘engage21 ment for work of’’; 

22 (vi) by striking ‘‘employment in’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘engagement for work in’’; 

24 (vii) by striking ‘‘employees’’ and in25 serting ‘‘workers’’; and 


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1 (viii) by striking ‘‘such employment’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘such work’’; 

3 (D) in subsection (s), by inserting ‘‘(or, for 

4 purposes of any child labor provision of this 

5 Act, including section 12 and any provision of 

6 this Act administering or enforcing such a child 

7 labor provision, workers)’’ after ‘‘employees’’ 

8 each place it appears; and 

9 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(z) ‘Work’, for purposes of any child labor provision 

11 of this Act, including subsections (d)(2), (l), and (aa), sec12 tion 12, and any provision of this Act administering or 

13 enforcing such a child labor provision, means the perform14 ance of services for remuneration, including employment. 

15 ‘‘(aa) ‘Worker’, for purposes of any child labor provi16 sion of this Act, including subsection (l), section 12, and 

17 any provision of this Act administering or enforcing such 

18 a child labor provision, means any individual (including 

19 an independent contractor or an employee) engaged for 

20 work by an employer.’’; 

21 (2) in section 11 (29 U.S.C. 211)— 

22 (A) in subsection (a)— 

23 (i) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

24 any child labor provision of this Act, in25 cluding section 12 and any provision of 


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1 this Act administering or enforcing such a 

2 child labor provision, work)’’ after ‘‘em3 ployment’’; and 

4 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

5 any child labor provision of this Act, in6 cluding section 12 and any provision of 

7 this Act administering or enforcing such a 

8 child labor provision, workers)’’ after 

9 ‘‘such employees’’; and 

10 (B) in subsection (c)— 

11 (i) by inserting ‘‘or, for purposes of 

12 any child labor provision of this Act, in13 cluding section 12 and any provision of 

14 this Act administering or enforcing such a 

15 child labor provision, the persons working 

16 for the employer’’ after ‘‘employed by 

17 him’’; and 

18 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of 

19 any such child labor provision of this Act, 

20 work)’’ after ‘‘employment’’; 

21 (3) in section 12 (29 U.S.C. 212)— 

22 (A) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘employ23 ment of’’ and inserting ‘‘engagement for work 

24 of’’; and 


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1 (B) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘em2 ployee’’ and inserting ‘‘worker’’; 

3 (4) in section 13 (29 U.S.C. 213)— 

4 (A) in subsection (c)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘em6 ployed’’ and inserting ‘‘engaged for work’’; 

7 (ii) in paragraph (5)— 

8 (I) by striking ‘‘employee’’ each 

9 place it appears and inserting ‘‘work10 er’’; 

11 (II) by striking ‘‘employees’’ each 

12 place it appears and inserting ‘‘work13 ers’’; and 

14 (III) in subparagraph (C)— 

15 (aa) in clause (i), by striking 

16 ‘‘employee’s’’ each place it ap17 pears and inserting ‘‘worker’s’’; 

18 and 

19 (bb) in clause (iii)(I), by 

20 striking ‘‘employment’’ and in21 serting ‘‘work’’; 

22 (iii) in paragraph (6)— 

23 (I) in the matter preceding sub24 paragraph (A)— 


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1 (aa) by striking ‘‘employees 

2 who are under’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘workers who are under’’; and 

4 (bb) by striking ‘‘Employee 

5 who are 17’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘Workers who are 17’’; 

7 (II) by striking ‘‘employee’’ each 

8 place it appears and inserting ‘‘work9 er’’; 

10 (III) by striking ‘‘employee’s’’ 

11 each place it appears and inserting 

12 ‘‘worker’s’’; 

13 (IV) by striking ‘‘of employment’’ 

14 each place it appears and inserting 

15 ‘‘of work’’; 

16 (V) in subparagraph (F), by 

17 striking ‘‘employees of’’ each place it 

18 appears and inserting ‘‘workers of’’; 

19 and 

20 (VI) in subparagraph (G), by 

21 striking ‘‘employment’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘engagement for work’’; and 

23 (iv) in paragraph (7)— 


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1 (I) in subparagraph (A)(i), by 

2 striking ‘‘employed’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘engaged for work’’; and 

4 (II) in subparagraph (B), in the 

5 matter preceding clause (i), by strik6 ing ‘‘employment’’ and inserting ‘‘en7 gagement for work’’; 

8 (B) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘(or, for 

9 purposes of section 12, worker)’’ after ‘‘any em10 ployee’’; and 

11 (C) in subsection (f), by inserting ‘‘(or, for 

12 purposes of section 11 (with respect to any 

13 child labor provision of this Act) and 12, work14 er)’’ after ‘‘any employee’’; and 

15 (5) in section 18C (29 U.S.C. 218c)— 

16 (A) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of any 

17 child labor provision of this Act, including sec18 tion 12 and any provision of this Act admin19 istering or enforcing such a child labor provi20 sion, worker)’’ after ‘‘employee’’ each place it 

21 appears; and 

22 (B) by inserting ‘‘(or, for purposes of any 

23 child labor provision of this Act, including sec24 tion 12 and any provision of this Act admin25 istering or enforcing such a child labor proviVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Apr 08, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4038.IS S4038

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1 sion, of work)’’ after ‘‘employment’’ each place 

2 it appears. 

3 SEC. 102. REVISED AGE REQUIREMENT FOR CHILD AGRI4 CULTURAL EMPLOYMENT AND EXEMPTIONS 

5 FOR HAZARDOUS AND NON-HAZARDOUS 

6 WORK. 

7 (a) REVISED AGE REQUIREMENT FOR CHILD AGRI8 CULTURAL EMPLOYMENT AND EXEMPTIONS FOR NON9 HAZARDOUS WORK.—Section 13(c) of the Fair Labor 

10 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 213(c)) is amended by 

11 striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following: ‘‘(1) 

12 Except as provided in paragraph (2), the provisions of sec13 tion 12 relating to child labor shall not apply to any work14 er— 

15 ‘‘(A) who is younger than 16 years of age and 

16 engaged for work, outside of the school hours for the 

17 school district where such worker is living while so 

18 engaged, in agriculture by his or her parent, grand19 parent, aunt, uncle, first cousin, or legal guardian, 

20 on a farm that is owned or operated by such parent, 

21 grandparent, aunt, uncle, first cousin, or legal 

22 guardian, while such worker is so engaged; 

23 ‘‘(B) who— 

24 ‘‘(i) is 16 or 17 years of age; and 

25 ‘‘(ii) is engaged for work in agriculture; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) who— 

2 ‘‘(i) is 14 or 15 years of age; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) is engaged for work in agriculture— 

4 ‘‘(I) in an occupation that the Sec5 retary finds and declares appropriate for 

6 the engagement for work of a child who is 

7 14 or 15 years of age and does not inter8 fere with the schooling, health, and well9 being of such a child; and 

10 ‘‘(II) for periods, and under condi11 tions, that the Secretary finds and declares 

12 appropriate for the engagement for work of 

13 a child who is 14 or 15 years of age in 

14 non-agricultural work and does not inter15 fere with the schooling, health, and well16 being of such a child.’’. 

17 (b) EXEMPTIONS FOR HAZARDOUS WORK.—Section 

18 13(c) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 213(c)) is further amended 

19 by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(2) The provisions of section 12 relating to child 

21 labor shall apply to any worker younger than 18 years of 

22 age engaged for work in agriculture in an occupation the 

23 Secretary finds and declares to be particularly hazardous 

24 for the engagement for work of a child younger than 18 


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1 years of age or detrimental to the health or well-being of 

2 such a child, except— 

3 ‘‘(A) with respect to engagement for work, out4 side of the school hours for the school district where 

5 such worker is living while so engaged, in agriculture 

6 by his or her parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, first 

7 cousin, or legal guardian, on a farm that is owned 

8 or operated by such parent, grandparent, aunt, 

9 uncle, first cousin, or legal guardian; or 

10 ‘‘(B) with respect to engagement for work in 

11 agriculture of a worker who— 

12 ‘‘(i) is a student learner exempted under 

13 section 570.72(a) of title 29, Code of Federal 

14 Regulations (or any successor regulations); 

15 ‘‘(ii) is exempted under section 570.72(b) 

16 of title 29, Code of Federal Regulations (or any 

17 successor regulations), because the worker has 

18 completed a training program of the cooperative 

19 extension service of a land-grant college or uni20 versity; or 

21 ‘‘(iii) is exempted under section 570.72(c) 

22 of title 29, Code of Federal Regulations (or any 

23 successor regulations), because the worker is 

24 engaged in a vocational agricultural training 

25 program.’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. REPEAL OF WAIVER PROVISION FOR HAND HAR2 VEST LABORERS. 

3 Section 13(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

4 1938 (29 U.S.C. 213(c)) is amended by repealing para5 graph (4). 

6 SEC. 104. PESTICIDE-RELATED WORKER PROTECTION 

7 STANDARD. 

8 (a) CONGRESSIONAL FINDING.—Congress finds and 

9 declares that the engagement for work of children younger 

10 than the age of 18 in the occupation of a pesticide handler 

11 is particularly hazardous for, and detrimental to the 

12 health and well-being of, such children. 

13 (b) REQUIREMENT FOR SECRETARY OF LABOR.— 

14 Not later than the date that is 1 year after the date of 

15 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall revise 

16 part 570 of title 29, Code of Federal Regulations (as in 

17 effect on the date of enactment of this Act), to prohibit 

18 the engagement for work of a child under the age of 18 

19 as a pesticide handler. 

20 (c) DEFINITION OF PESTICIDE HANDLER.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this section, 

22 the term ‘‘pesticide handler’’ means, except as pro23 vided in subparagraph (B), an individual who— 

24 (A) is a child worker performing work at 

25 an agricultural establishment or commercial 

26 pesticide handling establishment; and 


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1 (B) is— 

2 (i) mixing, loading, transferring, or 

3 applying pesticides; 

4 (ii) disposing of pesticides or pesticide 

5 containers; 

6 (iii) handling opened containers of 

7 pesticides; 

8 (iv) acting as a flagger; 

9 (v) cleaning, adjusting, handling, or 

10 repairing the parts of mixing, loading, or 

11 application equipment that may contain 

12 pesticide residues; 

13 (vi) assisting with the application of 

14 pesticides; 

15 (vii) entering a greenhouse or other 

16 enclosed area— 

17 (I) after the application of a pes18 ticide and before— 

19 (aa) the inhalation exposure 

20 level listed in the labeling has 

21 been reached; or 

22 (bb) one of the ventilation 

23 criteria described in paragraph 

24 (3), or in the labeling of the pes25 ticide, has been met; and 


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1 (II) to— 

2 (aa) operate ventilation 

3 equipment; 

4 (bb) adjust or remove cov5 erings used in fumigation; or 

6 (cc) monitor air levels; 

7 (viii) entering a treated area outdoors 

8 after application of any soil fumigant to 

9 adjust or remove soil coverings such as tar10 paulins; 

11 (ix) performing tasks as a crop advi12 sor— 

13 (I) during any pesticide applica14 tion; 

15 (II) before— 

16 (aa) the inhalation exposure 

17 level listed in the labeling has 

18 been reached; or 

19 (bb) one of the ventilation 

20 criteria described in paragraph 

21 (3), or in the labeling of the pes22 ticide, has been met; or 

23 (III) during any restricted-entry 

24 interval; or 

25 (x) performing any task or duty— 


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1 (I) described in the definition of 

2 the term ‘‘handler’’ in section 170.3 

3 of title 40, Code of Federal Regula4 tions (or any successor regulations); 

5 and 

6 (II) not otherwise described in 

7 clauses (i) through (ix). 

8 (2) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘‘pesticide handler’’ 

9 described under paragraph (1) does not include any 

10 individual who is only handling pesticide containers 

11 that have been emptied or cleaned according to pes12 ticide product labeling instructions or, in the absence 

13 of such instructions, have been subjected to triple14 rinsing or its equivalent. 

15 (3) VENTILATION CRITERIA.—The ventilation 

16 criteria described in this paragraph are the fol17 lowing: 

18 (A) FUMIGANT.—In the case of a pesticide 

19 applied as a fumigant, an individual may not be 

20 in the entire greenhouse (and any adjacent 

21 structure that cannot be sealed off from the 

22 treated area)— 

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1 tion exposure level the labeling of the pes2 ticide requires to be achieved; or 

3 (ii) in the case of a pesticide with no 

4 inhalation exposure level listed on the la5 beling, until after— 

6 (I) ten air exchanges are com7 pleted; 

8 (II) two hours of ventilation 

9 using fans or other mechanical ven10 tilating systems; 

11 (III) four hours of ventilation 

12 using vents, windows or other passive 

13 ventilation; 

14 (IV) eleven hours with no ventila15 tion followed by 1 hour of mechanical 

16 ventilation; 

17 (V) eleven hours with no ventila18 tion followed by 2 hours of passive 

19 ventilation; or 

20 (VI) twenty-four hours with no 

21 ventilation. 

22 (B) SMOKE, MIST, FOG, OR AEROSOL.—In 

23 the case of a pesticide applied as a smoke, mist, 

24 fog, or aerosol, an individual may not be in the 


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1 entire enclosed area until the requirements in 

2 clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) are met. 

3 (C) RESPIRATORY PROTECTION DEVICE

4 REQUIRED FOR APPLICATION BY THE PRODUCT

5 LABELING.—In the case of a pesticide not oth6 erwise covered by subparagraph (A) or (B) and 

7 for which a respiratory protection device is re8 quired by the product labeling for application, 

9 an individual may not be in the treated area 

10 until the requirements in clause (i) or (ii) of 

11 subparagraph (A) are met. 

12 (D) APPLIED FROM 12-INCHES ABOVE, AS

13 A FINE SPRAY, OR USING PRESSURE GREATER

14 THAN 40 PSI.—In the case of a pesticide that is 

15 not otherwise covered by subparagraph (A), 

16 (B), or (C) and is applied from a height of not 

17 less than 12 inches from the planting medium, 

18 as a fine spray, or using spray pressure greater 

19 than 40 pounds per square inch, an individual 

20 may not be in the treated area (or any area 

21 that is 25 feet or less from the enclosed area) 

22 until the application of the pesticide is complete 

23 and all required re-entry intervals have been 

24 maintained. 


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1 (E) OTHER.—In the case of a pesticide 

2 that is not otherwise covered by subparagraph 

3 (A), (B), (C), or (D), an individual may not be 

4 in the treated area until the application of the 

5 pesticide is complete and all required re-entry 

6 intervals have been maintained. 

7 (4) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of paragraph 

8 (1): 

9 (A) AGRICULTURAL ESTABLISHMENT.— 

10 The term ‘‘agricultural establishment’’ means 

11 an establishment— 

12 (i) that is an establishment described 

13 in the definition of the term ‘‘agricultural 

14 establishment’’ in section 170.3 of title 40, 

15 Code of Federal Regulations (or any suc16 cessor regulations); and 

17 (ii) to which subpart C of part 170 of 

18 title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (or 

19 any successor regulations) applies. 

20 (B) CHILD WORKER.—The term ‘‘child 

21 worker’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘work22 er’’ in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards 

23 Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203). 

24 (C) PESTICIDE.—The term ‘‘pesticide’’ has 

25 the meaning given that term in section 2 of the 


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1 Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide 

2 Act (7 U.S.C. 136). 

3 (D) OTHER TERMS.—The terms ‘‘commer4 cial pesticide handling establishment’’, ‘‘crop 

5 advisor’’, ‘‘farm’’, ‘‘forest’’, ‘‘fumigant’’, 

6 ‘‘greenhouse’’, ‘‘nursery’’, ‘‘restricted-entry in7 terval’’, and ‘‘treated area’’ have the meanings 

8 given such terms in section 170.3 of title 40, 

9 Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor 

10 regulations). 

11 TITLE II—PENALTIES AND 

12 ENFORCEMENT 

13 SEC. 201. INCREASED CIVIL PENALTIES FOR CHILD LABOR 

14 VIOLATIONS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 16(e)(1) of the Fair 

16 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(e)(1)) is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

19 (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 

20 striking ‘‘not to exceed’’ and inserting ‘‘of an 

21 amount (subject to subparagraph (D)) that is’’; 

22 and 

23 (B) by striking clauses (i) and (ii) and in24 serting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(i) not less than $1,000 and not more than 

2 $156,290 for each worker who was the subject of 

3 such a violation, which penalty may be doubled in 

4 the case of a violation described in subparagraph 

5 (C); or 

6 ‘‘(ii) not less than $1,000 and not more than 

7 $710,310 with regard to each violation of section 12 

8 or 13(c), relating to child labor, or any regulation 

9 issued pursuant to such a section, that causes the 

10 death or serious injury of any worker younger than 

11 the age of 18 years, which penalty may be doubled 

12 in the case of a violation described in subparagraph 

13 (C).’’; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(C) For purposes of penalties that may be doubled 

16 under clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A), a violation 

17 described in this subparagraph is a violation— 

18 ‘‘(i) that is a repeated or willful violation; 

19 ‘‘(ii) that has occurred within 10 years of the 

20 final disposition of another violation of section 12 or 

21 13(c), relating to child labor, or any regulation 

22 issued pursuant to such a section; or 

23 ‘‘(iii) for which the employer that committed 

24 the violation is found, during the period in which the 

25 person was investigated for such violation, to have 


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1 engaged for work more than 10 children in such a 

2 violation.’’. 

3 (b) ADJUSTMENT OF AMOUNTS FOR INFLATION.— 

4 Section 16(e)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

5 (29 U.S.C. 216(e)(1)), as amended by subsection (a), is 

6 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(D) The dollar amounts referred to in clauses 

8 (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A) shall be increased 

9 annually, for fiscal year 2025 and every fiscal year 

10 thereafter, by the percent increase, if any, in the 

11 consumer price index for all urban consumers (all 

12 items; United States city average) for the most re13 cent 12-month period for which applicable data is 

14 available.’’. 

15 SEC. 202. SPECIAL CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR CERTAIN AG16 GRAVATED CHILD LABOR VIOLATIONS. 

17 Section 16(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

18 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(a)) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘Any’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) Any’’; 

20 (2) by inserting ‘‘(other than subsection (a)(4) 

21 of such section)’’ after ‘‘section 15’’; 

22 (3) by striking ‘‘subsection’’ each place it ap23 pears and inserting ‘‘paragraph’’; and 

24 (4) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(2)(A) Any person who violates section 15(a)(4) 

2 shall upon conviction thereof be subject to a fine of (sub3 ject to subparagraph (B)) not more than $750,000, or to 

4 imprisonment for not more than 5 years, or both. 

5 ‘‘(B) The dollar amounts referred to in subparagraph 

6 (A) shall be increased annually, for fiscal year 2025 and 

7 every fiscal year thereafter, by the percent increase, if any, 

8 in the consumer price index for all urban consumers (all 

9 items; United States city average) for the most recent 12- 

10 month period for which applicable data is available.’’. 

11 TITLE III—REPORTS AND MEMO12 RANDUM OF UNDER13 STANDING 

14 SEC. 301. REPORT TO CONGRESS ON CHILD LABOR AND 

15 WORK-RELATED INJURIES TO CHILDREN AND 

16 RELATED MATTERS. 

17 The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is amended 

18 by inserting after section 12 (29 U.S.C. 212) the following 

19 new section: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 12A. DATA ON CHILD LABOR AND WORK-RELATED IN21 JURIES TO CHILDREN AND RELATED MAT22 TERS. 

23 ‘‘(a) DATA ANALYSIS.—Using the sources specified 

24 in subsection (b), the Secretary shall analyze data con25 cerning— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the number of children younger than 18 

2 years of age who are engaged for work in agriculture 

3 and non-agricultural sectors; and 

4 ‘‘(2) any work-related serious injury (as such 

5 term is defined in section 16(e)(1)(B) or death of 

6 any such child. 

7 ‘‘(b) SOURCES SPECIFIED.—The sources referred to 

8 in subsection (a) are the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) Sources within the Department of Labor, 

10 including the Wage and Hour Division, the Bureau 

11 of Labor Statistics, and the Occupational Safety and 

12 Health Administration. 

13 ‘‘(2) State employment security agencies and 

14 other relevant State agencies. 

15 ‘‘(3) The National Institute for Occupational 

16 Safety and Health. 

17 ‘‘(c) REPORT.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

19 the date of enactment of the CARE Act of 2024, 

20 and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit 

21 a report to Congress which shall include— 

22 ‘‘(A) a summary of the data collected by 

23 the Secretary under— 

24 ‘‘(i) this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) section 8(c)(2) of the Occupation 

2 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 

3 657(c)(2)) with respect to the death, seri4 ous injury or illness of a child younger 

5 than 18 years of age; 

6 ‘‘(B) an evaluation, based on such data, 

7 that reflects the status of child labor in agricul8 tural and non-agricultural sectors and related 

9 industry safety and health hazards; and 

10 ‘‘(C) any information, based on such data, 

11 that leads the Secretary to believe that children 

12 younger than 18 years of age may have been 

13 engaged for work in violation of section 12. 

14 ‘‘(2) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall, on 

15 the date that the Secretary submits each report 

16 under paragraph (1) to Congress, publish each such 

17 report in the Federal Register and on the website of 

18 the Department of Labor.’’. 

19 SEC. 302. EMPLOYER REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

20 Section 8(c)(2) of the Occupation Safety and Health 

21 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 657(c)(2)) is amended by insert22 ing ‘‘, including the age of the individual involved’’ before 

23 the period at the end. 


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1 SEC. 303. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING. 

2 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupa4 tional Safety and Health and the Administrator of the 

5 Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor shall 

6 enter into a memorandum of understanding— 

7 (1) to coordinate information sharing and facili8 tate enforcement activities between the Occupational 

9 Safety and Health Administration and the Wage and 

10 Hour Division, including with respect to— 

11 (A) records and reports provided to the 

12 Secretary of Labor pursuant to section 8(c) of 

13 the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 

14 1970 (29 U.S.C. 657(c)) or in accordance with 

15 a State plan that has been approved by the Sec16 retary under section 18 of the Occupational 

17 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 

18 667); and 

19 (B) any other information available to the 

20 Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational 

21 Safety and Health regarding any injury, illness, 

22 or fatality involving a worker who is a child 

23 younger than 18 years of age; 

24 (2) that provides that the Assistant Secretary 

25 of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health shall 

26 encourage each State agency that administers such 


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1 a State plan in a State to participate in information 

2 sharing activities under the memorandum of under3 standing; and 

4 (3) that is based on the agreement entitled 

5 ‘‘Memorandum of Understanding Between the U.S. 

6 Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and 

7 Health Administration and the U.S. Department of 

8 Labor, Wage and Hour Division’’ and made effective 

9 on May 4, 2023. 

10 TITLE IV—EFFECTIVE DATES 

11 SEC. 401. EFFECTIVE DATE FOR APPLICATION OF CHILD 

12 LABOR LAWS TO INDEPENDENT CONTRAC13 TORS. 

14 The amendments made by section 101 shall take ef15 fect on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment 

16 of this Act. 

17 SEC. 402. APPLICATION OF OTHER FAIR LABOR STAND18 ARDS AMENDMENTS. 

19 (a) RULEMAKING.—Not later than the date that is 

20 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

21 Secretary of Labor shall prescribe rules as necessary to 

22 implement the amendments made by sections 102 and 103 

23 and by title II and the revision required by section 104(b). 

24 Any such rules issued shall take effect not later than 30 


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1 days after the date on which the rules are published in 

2 the Federal Register. 

3 (b) VIOLATIONS.—The amendments made by sections 

4 102 and 103 and by title II and the revision required by 

5 section 104(b) shall apply to violations of the Fair Labor 

6 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) that occur 

7 after the date on which the rules issued under subsection 

8 (a) take effect. 

9 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the 

10 amendments made by sections 102 and 103 and by title 

11 II and the revision required by section 104(b) shall be con12 strued to preempt any State law that provides protections 

13 or remedies for employees that are greater than the pro14 tections or remedies provided under such amendments or 

15 such revision. 

16 SEC. 403. APPLICATION OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND 

17 HEALTH ACT AMENDMENTS. 

18 (a) RULEMAKING.—Not later than the date that is 

19 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

20 Secretary of Labor shall prescribe rules as necessary to 

21 implement the amendment made by section 302. Any such 

22 rules issued shall take effect not later than 30 days after 

23 the date on which the rules are published in the Federal 

24 Register. 


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1 (b) VIOLATIONS.—The amendment made by section 

2 302 shall apply to work-related deaths, injuries, and ill3 nesses that occur after the date on which the rules issued 

4 under paragraph (1) take effect. 

Æ 


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