I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6079 

To strengthen protections against child labor violations, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 26, 2023 

Ms. DELAURO (for herself, Mr. POCAN, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. NADLER, Ms. 

NORTON, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. ESPAILLAT, 

Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. UNDERWOOD, and Ms. JACKSON LEE) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 

the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To strengthen protections against child labor violations, 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 Harmed In 

5 Life-threatening or Dangerous Labor Act’’ or the 

6 ‘‘CHILD Labor Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

TITLE I—STRENGTHENING PROTECTIONS AGAINST CHILD LABOR 

VIOLATIONS UNDER THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938 

Sec. 101. Definition of oppressive child labor; hazardous occupations. 

Sec. 102. Enhancing child labor protections. 

Sec. 103. Strengthening penalties for child labor violations. 

Sec. 104. Training and engagement with respect to child labor violations. 

TITLE II—CHILD LABOR REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN FEDERAL 

CONTRACTORS AND RECIPIENTS OF FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE 

Sec. 201. Amendments to the Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act. 

Sec. 202. Child labor requirements for contracts and assistance covered by the 

Davis-Bacon Act or Related Acts or the Service Contract Act. 

TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 301. Reports to Congress on work-related injuries, illnesses, and deaths. 

3 TITLE I—STRENGTHENING PRO4 TECTIONS AGAINST CHILD 

5 LABOR VIOLATIONS UNDER 

6 THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS 

7 ACT OF 1938 

8 SEC. 101. DEFINITION OF OPPRESSIVE CHILD LABOR; HAZ9 ARDOUS OCCUPATIONS. 

10 (a) OPPRESSIVE CHILD LABOR.—Subsection (l) of 

11 section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

12 U.S.C. 203) is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(l)(1) ‘Oppressive child labor’ means a condition of 

14 employment under which— 

15 ‘‘(A) any employee under 18 years of age is em16 ployed in— 


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1 ‘‘(i) manufacturing; 

2 ‘‘(ii) mining; 

3 ‘‘(iii) trenching or excavation; 

4 ‘‘(iv) meat processing; 

5 ‘‘(v) demolition; or 

6 ‘‘(vi) explosives; 

7 ‘‘(B) any employee under 18 years of age is em8 ployed by an employer in an occupation, or in or 

9 around a place of work, that the Secretary shall find 

10 and by order declare to pose a danger or risk of in11 jury or to be detrimental to the health, safety, or 

12 well-being of children under 18 years of age; 

13 ‘‘(C) any employee who is 14 or 15 years of age 

14 is employed by an employer (other than a parent or 

15 a person standing in place of a parent employing his 

16 or her own child or a child in his or her custody)— 

17 ‘‘(i) in an occupation, or in or around a 

18 place of work, that the Secretary shall find and 

19 by order declare to pose a danger or risk of in20 jury or to be detrimental to the health, safety, 

21 or well-being of children who are such ages; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) in such employment that is not con23 fined to periods that will not interfere with 

24 their schooling and to conditions that will not 


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1 interfere with their health, safety, or well-being; 

2 or 

3 ‘‘(D) any employee is under 14 years of age em4 ployed by an employer (other than a parent or a per5 son standing in place of a parent employing his or 

6 her own child or a child in his or her custody). 

7 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1)— 

8 ‘‘(A) the term ‘occupation’ means work per9 formed by a person, including all jobs, duties, tasks, 

10 and tools or equipment typically utilized in that 

11 work; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the term ‘place of work’ means the entire 

13 worksite, including any facility, factory, plant, 

14 grounds, campus, site, or physical location (whether 

15 fixed or mobile) where the work is performed.’’. 

16 (b) HAZARDOUS OCCUPATIONS AND PLACES OF

17 WORK.—Section 12 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

18 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212) is amended by adding at the end 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(e) HAZARDOUS OCCUPATIONS AND PLACES OF

21 WORK.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

23 after the date of enactment of the Children Harmed 

24 In Life-threatening or Dangerous Labor Act, the 

25 Secretary shall issue— 


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1 ‘‘(A) regulations with respect to occupa2 tions in the industries described in subpara3 graph (A) of section 3(l)(1); 

4 ‘‘(B) regulations and orders with respect to 

5 occupations and places of work covered under 

6 subparagraph (B) of such section; 

7 ‘‘(C) regulations and orders with respect to 

8 occupations and places of work covered under 

9 subparagraph (C)(i) of such section; and 

10 ‘‘(D) regulations with respect to occupa11 tions covered under section 13(c)(2) as particu12 larly hazardous for the employment of children 

13 below the age of 16. 

14 ‘‘(2) UPDATES.—Not less than every 5 years, 

15 the Secretary shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) review all regulations and orders 

17 issued under paragraph (1) to determine wheth18 er such regulations and orders need to be re19 vised, which revisions may include updating 

20 such regulations or orders to include additional 

21 occupations or places of work, as applicable; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(B) revise any such regulations or orders 

24 the Secretary so determines need to be re25 vised.’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. ENHANCING CHILD LABOR PROTECTIONS. 

2 (a) ACCEPTING RESPONSIBILITY FOR COMPANIES IN

3 SUPPLY CHAIN ENGAGING IN OPPRESSIVE CHILD

4 LABOR.— 

5 (1) RECORDS RELATED TO PRIME CONTRAC6 TORS AND SUBCONTRACTORS.—Section 12(b) of the 

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

8 212(b)) is amended by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: ‘‘In making investigations and inspections 

10 under section 11(a) with respect to the employment 

11 of minors, the Secretary may seek records related to 

12 any contractor or subcontractor at any tier of any 

13 person suspected of a violation of this section and 

14 may request any annual profit or loss statement of 

15 any such person or any contractor or subcontractor 

16 of such person.’’. 

17 (2) SECONDARY OPPRESSIVE CHILD LABOR.— 

18 Section 12(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

19 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212) is amended— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘No employer’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘(1) No employer’’; and 

22 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(2)(A) No person shall produce, manufacture, 

24 or otherwise offer into commerce a good or service 

25 with respect to which an employer who is a con26 tractor or subcontractor (at any tier) of the person 


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1 employs oppressive child labor in the performance of 

2 the contract or subcontract for producing, manufac3 turing, or otherwise offering into commerce such 

4 good or service. 

5 ‘‘(B) A person shall not be in violation of sub6 paragraph (A) if the person— 

7 ‘‘(i) entered into a prime contract in a 

8 good faith reliance on a written assurance from 

9 the contractor that the contractor and any sub10 contractor at any tier of the contract would not 

11 employ oppressive child labor in the perform12 ance of the contract or subcontract for pro13 ducing, manufacturing, or otherwise offering 

14 into commerce the good or service; 

15 ‘‘(ii) had no notice that the employer de16 scribed in subparagraph (A) would employ op17 pressive child labor in such performance; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) has taken meaningful and affirmative 

19 steps to ensure that all contractors and sub20 contractors of the person at any tier of the con21 tract for such performance would not employ 

22 oppressive child labor in such performance.’’. 

23 (b) HOT GOODS.—Section 12(a) of the Fair Labor 

24 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212(a)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘thirty’’ and inserting ‘‘180’’; 

2 and 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘and who acquired such goods 

4 for value without notice of any such violation,’’ and 

5 inserting ‘‘, who acquired such goods for value with6 out notice of any such violation, and who has taken 

7 meaningful and affirmative steps to ensure that all 

8 producers, manufacturers, or dealers of the pur9 chaser are in compliance with this section,’’. 

10 (c) ‘‘UNLAWFULLY MANUFACTURED; CHILD LABOR’’ 

11 TAGS.—Section 12 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

12 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212), as amended by section 101(b), is 

13 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(f) ‘UNLAWFULLY MANUFACTURED; CHILD LABOR’ 

15 TAGS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall have 

17 the authority, in accordance with a process deter18 mined by the Secretary through regulations, to affix 

19 to any goods produced by a person in violation of 

20 subsection (c) a tag of not more than 6 inches in 

21 length bearing the words ‘Unlawfully manufactured; 

22 child labor’. 

23 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—No person (other than the 

24 Secretary, an authorized representative of the Sec25 retary, or the consumer with respect to the goods) 


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1 shall remove, alter, deface, or otherwise interfere 

2 with a tag affixed to goods under paragraph (1).’’. 

3 (d) SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST.—Section 12 of the 

4 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216), as 

5 amended by subsection (c), is further amended by adding 

6 at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(g) SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

9 provision in this Act, for purposes of this section 

10 and any other provision in this Act administering or 

11 enforcing this section, the terms ‘employer’ and ‘per12 son’ include a successor in interest of the employer 

13 or person, respectively. 

14 ‘‘(2) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—An em15 ployer or other person that is a successor in interest 

16 of another employer, or other person, in violation of 

17 this section shall be jointly and severally liable under 

18 this Act with such other employer or person, respec19 tively, for such violation. 

20 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION OF SUCCESSOR IN INTER21 EST.—In this subsection, the term ‘successor in in22 terest’, with respect to an employer or other person, 

23 means any person who— 


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1 ‘‘(A) uses substantially the same facilities 

2 or workers to offer substantially the same goods 

3 or services as the employer or other person; 

4 ‘‘(B) employs as a managing agent any in5 dividual who was responsible for wages, hours, 

6 or working conditions as the employer or other 

7 person; or 

8 ‘‘(C)(i) has an owner, partner, officer, or 

9 director who is an immediate family member of 

10 an owner, partner, officer, or director of the 

11 employer or other person; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) is in the same industry as the em13 ployer or other person.’’. 

14 (e) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE STOP WORK ORDERS.— 

15 Section 12(b) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

16 (29 U.S.C. 212(b)), as amended by subsection (a)(1), is 

17 further amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary of Labor’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘(1) The Secretary of Labor’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(2)(A) In addition to the authority of the Sec22 retary to bring an action under section 17 as de23 scribed in paragraph (1), the Secretary may issue a 

24 stop work order to any person that the Secretary 

25 has found to be in violation of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Such stop work order may apply to one or 

2 more worksites of the person (without regard to 

3 whether all such worksites involve a violation of this 

4 section). 

5 ‘‘(C) A stop work order issued under this para6 graph shall remain in effect until the person issued 

7 the order provides the Secretary with adequate evi8 dence that the person is no longer in violation of this 

9 section. 

10 ‘‘(D)(i) A person shall compensate any indi11 vidual engaged to perform work for remuneration for 

12 the person and who does not perform such work as 

13 a result of a stop work order issued to the person 

14 under this paragraph. Such compensation shall be at 

15 the regular rate at which the individual is so en16 gaged for all hours the individual would have worked 

17 but for the stop work order. 

18 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of administration and en19 forcement of a violation of clause (i)— 

20 ‘‘(I) a violation of such clause shall be 

21 deemed a violation of section 6 and not a viola22 tion of this section; 

23 ‘‘(II) any amounts owing to an individual 

24 which have been withheld in violation of such 

25 clause shall be deemed to be unpaid minimum 


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1 wages or unpaid overtime-time compensation 

2 under this Act; and 

3 ‘‘(III) any reference in section 16 to an 

4 ‘employer’ or ‘employee’ shall be deemed a ref5 erence to a person or an individual, respectively, 

6 without regard to whether the person or indi7 vidual is an employer or employee, respec8 tively.’’. 

9 SEC. 103. STRENGTHENING PENALTIES FOR CHILD LABOR 

10 VIOLATIONS. 

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

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

13 amended— 

14 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking clauses (i) 

15 and (ii) and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(i) $151,380 for each employee who was the 

17 subject of such a violation, which penalty may be 

18 doubled in the case of a violation described in sub19 paragraph (C); or 

20 ‘‘(ii) $690,000 with regard to each violation of 

21 section 12 or 13(c), relating to child labor, or any 

22 regulation issued pursuant to such a section, that 

23 causes the death or serious injury of any employee 

24 under the age of 18 years, which penalty may be 


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1 doubled in the case of a violation described in sub2 paragraph (C).’’; and 

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

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

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

6 described in this subparagraph is a violation— 

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

8 ‘‘(ii) that involves an occupation or place of 

9 work described in any of subparagraphs (A) through 

10 (D) of section 12(e)(1); 

11 ‘‘(iii) that has occurred within 10 years of the 

12 final disposition of another violation of section 12 or 

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

14 issued pursuant to such a section; or 

15 ‘‘(iv) for which the employer that committed the 

16 violation is found, during the period in which the 

17 person was investigated for such violation, to have 

18 employed more than 10 children in such a viola19 tion.’’. 

20 (b) ANTI-RETALIATION VIOLATIONS.—Section 

21 16(e)(2) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

22 U.S.C. 216(e)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following: ‘‘Any person who violates section 15(a)(3) with 

24 respect to any complaint or proceeding related to section 

25 12 or 13(c), relating to child labor, or any regulation 


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1 issued pursuant to such a section, shall be subject to a 

2 civil penalty not to exceed $75,000, for each such viola3 tion, in addition to such legal or equitable relief as may 

4 be appropriate to effectuate the purposes of such section 

5 15(a)(3), as described in subsection (b).’’. 

6 (c) DAMAGES FOR VICTIMS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 16 of the Fair 

8 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216) is 

9 amended— 

10 (A) in subsection (b)— 

11 (i) by inserting after the third sen12 tence the following: ‘‘Any person who vio13 lates section 12(c) or section 13(c), relat14 ing to child labor, or any regulation issued 

15 pursuant to such a section, shall be liable 

16 to the employee or employees affected for 

17 compensatory damages and, as appro18 priate, punitive damages or legal or equi19 table relief as described in subsection (f).’’; 

20 (ii) in the sentence beginning ‘‘An ac21 tion to recover’’, by striking ‘‘employer’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘employer (or person as ap23 plicable in the case of a violation of section 

24 12(c) or 13(c), relating to child labor, or 


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1 any regulation issued pursuant to such a 

2 section)’’; and 

3 (iii) in the last sentence— 

4 (I) by striking ‘‘or (2) legal’’ and 

5 inserting ‘‘, (2) legal’’; and 

6 (II) by inserting before the pe7 riod at the end ‘‘, or (3) compensatory 

8 damages and, as appropriate, punitive 

9 damages or legal or equitable relief is 

10 sought for a violation of section 12(c) 

11 or section 13(c), relating to child 

12 labor, or any regulation issued pursu13 ant to such a section’’; 

14 (B) in subsection (c)— 

15 (i) by inserting after the second sen16 tence, the following: ‘‘The Secretary is au17 thorized to supervise the payment of any 

18 compensatory damages, punitive damages, 

19 or legal or equitable relief owed to an em20 ployee or employees under subsection (b) 

21 for a violation of section 12(c) or section 

22 13(c), relating to child labor, or any regu23 lation issued pursuant to such a section, 

24 and the Secretary may bring an action in 


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1 any court of competent jurisdiction to ob2 tain such damages or relief.’’; and 

3 (ii) in the sentence beginning ‘‘The 

4 right provided by subsection (b)’’— 

5 (I) by striking ‘‘the first sentence 

6 of’’; 

7 (II) by inserting ‘‘or relief’’ after 

8 ‘‘other damages’’; and 

9 (III) by striking ‘‘an employer’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘a person’’; 

11 (C) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘em12 ployer’’ and inserting ‘‘person’’; and 

13 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(f) LEGAL AND EQUITABLE RELIEF FOR CHILD

15 LABOR VIOLATIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person who violates sec17 tion 12(c) or section 13(c), relating to child labor, 

18 or any regulation issued pursuant to such a sec19 tion— 

20 ‘‘(A) shall be liable to each employee af21 fected by the violation— 

22 ‘‘(i) except as provided in clause (ii), 

23 in an amount that is not less than $75,000 

24 in compensatory damages, which penalty 

25 shall be doubled in the case of a violation 


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1 that involves an occupation or place of 

2 work described in subparagraph any of 

3 subparagraphs (A) through (D) of section 

4 12(e)(1); or 

5 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a violation of sec6 tion 12(c) or section 13(c), relating to 

7 child labor, or any regulation issued pursu8 ant to such a section, that causes death or 

9 serious injury, in an amount that is not 

10 less than $750,000 in compensatory dam11 ages, which penalty may be doubled in the 

12 case of such a violation that is a repeated 

13 or willful violation; and 

14 ‘‘(B) may, as appropriate, be liable to each 

15 employee affected by the violation— 

16 ‘‘(i) in an amount that is not less 

17 than $1,000,000 in punitive damages in 

18 the case of a violation that causes death or 

19 serious injury; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) for legal or equitable relief, in21 cluding injunctive relief or disgorgement of 

22 profits. 

23 ‘‘(2) RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.—Nothing in 

24 this subsection shall preempt a State or municipal 

25 law that provides greater penalties or remedies for 


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1 violations of child labor requirements than those pro2 vided under this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION OF SERIOUS INJURY.—For 

4 purposes of paragraph (1), the term ‘serious injury’ 

5 has the meaning given such term in subsection 

6 (e)(1)(B)’’. 

7 (2) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—Section 6 of 

8 the Portal-to-Portal Act (29 U.S.C. 255) is amend9 ed— 

10 (A) in the matter preceding subsection (a), 

11 by inserting ‘‘(or any compensatory damages, 

12 punitive damages, or legal or equitable relief for 

13 a violation of section 12(c) or section 13(c), re14 lating to child labor, of such Act, or any regula15 tion issued pursuant to such a section)’’ after 

16 ‘‘Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938’’; and 

17 (B) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘and ex18 cept that a cause of action for a violation of 

19 section 12(c) or section 13(c), relating to child 

20 labor, of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

21 1938, or any regulation issued pursuant to such 

22 a section, may be commenced within 10 years 

23 after the cause of action accrued’’ before the 

24 semicolon. 


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1 (d) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Section 16(a) of the 

2 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(a)) is 

3 amended— 

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

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

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

7 (3) by striking ‘‘subsection’’ each place it ap8 pears and inserting ‘‘paragraph’’; and 

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

10 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), any 

11 person who violates section 15(a)(4) shall upon conviction 

12 thereof be subject to a fine of not more than $750,000, 

13 or to imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or both. 

14 ‘‘(B) Any person who violates section 12(f)(2) shall 

15 upon conviction thereof be subject to a fine of not more 

16 than $500,000, or to imprisonment of not more than 1 

17 year, or both. No person shall be imprisoned under this 

18 subparagraph except for an offense committed after the 

19 conviction of such person for a prior offense under this 

20 subparagraph.’’. 

21 SEC. 104. TRAINING AND ENGAGEMENT WITH RESPECT TO 

22 CHILD LABOR VIOLATIONS. 

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

24 201 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 18D 

25 (42 U.S.C. 218d) the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 18E. TRAINING AND ENGAGEMENT WITH RESPECT TO 

2 CHILD LABOR VIOLATIONS. 

3 ‘‘The Secretary shall, directly or by grants or con4 tracts, provide for the establishment and supervision of 

5 programs for— 

6 ‘‘(1) education and training with respect to rec7 ognition, avoidance, and prevention of violations of 

8 section 12; 

9 ‘‘(2) education and training of professionals 

10 providing services to children on identifying and re11 sponding to oppressive child labor and incorporating 

12 into their activities knowledge about risk factors for 

13 exposing children to oppressive child labor; and 

14 ‘‘(3) identification of potential violations of sec15 tion 12 and support for victims of such violations.’’. 

16 TITLE II—CHILD LABOR RE17 QUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN 

18 FEDERAL CONTRACTORS AND 

19 RECIPIENTS OF FEDERAL FI20 NANCIAL ASSISTANCE 

21 SEC. 201. AMENDMENTS TO THE WALSH-HEALEY PUBLIC 

22 CONTRACTS ACT. 

23 Section 6502 of title 41, United States Code, is 

24 amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘A contract made by an agency’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A contract made 

3 by an agency’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ‘‘No indi5 vidual under 16 years of age and no incarcerated in6 dividual’’ and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(A) INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS.—No 

8 incarcerated individual’’; 

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

10 ‘‘(B) CHILDREN.—No individual under 16 

11 years of age will be employed by the contractor, 

12 or any subcontractor or supplier of the con13 tractor, in any activity at any tier under the 

14 contract, including any activity under a sub15 contract at any tier of the contract. No indi16 vidual 16 or 17 years of age will be employed 

17 by the contractor, or any subcontractor or sup18 plier of the contractor, in oppressive child labor, 

19 as defined under section 3(l) of the Fair Labor 

20 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(l)), in 

21 any activity at any tier under the contract, in22 cluding any activity under a subcontract at any 

23 tier of the contract.’’; and 

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

25 ‘‘(b) CHILDREN.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) GOOD FAITH DEFENSE FOR SECONDARY

2 LIABILITY.—A contractor shall not be in breach or 

3 violation of a representation or stipulation required 

4 under subsection (a)(3)(B) due to the actions of a 

5 subcontractor or supplier at any tier of the contract 

6 if the contractor— 

7 ‘‘(A) entered into a contract with the 

8 prime subcontractor or supplier in a good faith 

9 reliance on a written assurance from the sub10 contractor or supplier that all subcontractors 

11 and suppliers at any tier of the contract would 

12 not, in any activity under the contract, includ13 ing any activity under a subcontract at any tier 

14 of the contract, employ an individual under 16 

15 years of age or employ an individual 16 or 17 

16 years of age in oppressive child labor (as de17 fined under section 3(l) of the Fair Labor 

18 Standards Act of 1938); 

19 ‘‘(B) had no notice that a subcontractor or 

20 supplier would so employ an individual; and 

21 ‘‘(C) has taken meaningful and affirmative 

22 steps to ensure that all subcontractors and sup23 pliers at any tier of the contract would not so 

24 employ an individual. 

25 ‘‘(2) SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

2 other provision in this chapter, for purposes of 

3 subsection (a)(3)(B) and any other provision in 

4 this chapter administering or enforcing a stipu5 lation or representation required under such 

6 subsection— 

7 ‘‘(i) the term ‘contractor’ includes a 

8 successor in interest of the contractor; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘party responsible for a 

10 breach or violation’, in the case of a con11 tractor, includes a successor in interest of 

12 the contractor; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) the term ‘person’, in the case of 

14 a contractor, includes a successor in inter15 est of the contractor. 

16 ‘‘(B) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—A 

17 contractor that is a successor in interest of an18 other contractor in breach or violation of a rep19 resentation or stipulation required under sub20 section (a)(3)(B) shall be jointly and severally 

21 liable under this chapter with such other con22 tractor for such breach or violation. 

23 ‘‘(C) DEFINITION OF SUCCESSOR IN IN24 TEREST.—In this paragraph, the term ‘sucVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:42 Oct 31, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6079.IH H6079

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1 cessor in interest’, with respect to a contractor, 

2 means any person who— 

3 ‘‘(i) uses substantially the same facili4 ties or workers to offer substantially the 

5 same goods or services as the contractor; 

6 ‘‘(ii) employs as a managing agent 

7 any individual who was responsible for 

8 wages, hours, or working conditions as the 

9 contractor; or 

10 ‘‘(iii)(I) has an owner, partner, offi11 cer, or director who is an immediate family 

12 member of an owner, partner, officer, or 

13 director of the contractor; and 

14 ‘‘(II) is in the same industry as the 

15 contractor.’’. 

16 SEC. 202. CHILD LABOR REQUIREMENTS FOR CONTRACTS 

17 AND ASSISTANCE COVERED BY THE DAVIS18 BACON ACT OR RELATED ACTS OR THE SERV19 ICE CONTRACT ACT. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 (1) APPLICABLE CONTRACT OR ASSISTANCE.— 

22 The term ‘‘applicable contract or assistance’’ 

23 means— 

24 (A) a contract or subcontract entered into 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act to which 


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1 subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United 

2 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Davis3 Bacon Act’’), applies; 

4 (B) any form of financial assistance (in5 cluding through a grant or loan) awarded by 

6 the Federal Government— 

7 (i) for which the terms of such assist8 ance were agreed to by the Federal Gov9 ernment and the recipient of such assist10 ance after the date of enactment of this 

11 Act; and 

12 (ii) that requires all laborers and me13 chanics employed by contractors and sub14 contractors in the performance of construc15 tion work financed in whole or in part by 

16 such assistance to be paid wages at rates 

17 not less than those prevailing on projects 

18 of a similar character in the locality as de19 termined by the Secretary of Labor in ac20 cordance with subchapter IV of chapter 31 

21 of title 40, United States Code; and 

22 (C) a contract entered into after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act to which chapter 67 of 

24 title 41, United States Code (commonly known 

25 as the ‘‘Service Contract Act’’), applies. 


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1 (2) CONTRACTOR OR RECIPIENT OF AN APPLI2 CABLE CONTRACT OR ASSISTANCE.— 

3 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘contractor’’ 

4 or ‘‘recipient of an applicable contract or assist5 ance’’ includes a successor in interest of the 

6 contractor or recipient, respectively. 

7 (B) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—A 

8 contractor or recipient of an applicable contract 

9 or assistance that is a successor in interest of 

10 another contractor or recipient of an applicable 

11 contract or assistance in violation of this sec12 tion shall be jointly and severally liable under 

13 this section with such other contractor or re14 cipient for such violation. 

15 (3) OPPRESSIVE CHILD LABOR.—The term ‘‘op16 pressive child labor’’ has the meaning given such 

17 term in section 3(l) of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

18 of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(l)). 

19 (4) SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST.—The term ‘‘suc20 cessor in interest’’, with respect to a contractor or 

21 recipient of an applicable contract or assistance, 

22 means any person who— 

23 (A) uses substantially the same facilities or 

24 workers to offer substantially the same goods or 

25 services as the contractor or recipient; 


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1 (B) employs as a managing agent any indi2 vidual who was responsible for wages, hours, or 

3 working conditions as the contractor or recipi4 ent; or 

5 (C)(i) has an owner, partner, officer, or di6 rector who is an immediate family member of 

7 an owner, partner, officer, or director of the 

8 contractor or recipient; and 

9 (ii) is in the same industry as the con10 tractor or recipient. 

11 (b) CHILD LABOR PROVISIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The terms of any applicable 

13 contract or assistance shall include the following rep14 resentations and stipulations: 

15 (A) Oppressive child labor shall not be em16 ployed by the contractor or recipient of such ap17 plicable contract or assistance, or any subcon18 tractor or supplier of the contractor or recipient 

19 at any tier of the applicable contract or assist20 ance, in the performance of or work funded by 

21 the applicable contract or assistance. 

22 (B) The contractor or recipient of the ap23 plicable contract or assistance shall provide to 

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1 cable contract or assistance training on the re2 quirement under subparagraph (A). 

3 (C) The contractor or recipient of the ap4 plicable contract or assistance, and any subcon5 tractor or supplier under any tier of the appli6 cable contract or assistance, shall each establish 

7 a labor-management committee to review the 

8 policies with respect to child labor of the con9 tractor, recipient, subcontractor, or supplier, re10 spectively, and promote the reporting of any 

11 violations of such policies. 

12 (2) GOOD FAITH DEFENSE FOR SECONDARY LI13 ABILITY.—A contractor or recipient of an applicable 

14 contract or assistance shall not be in breach or viola15 tion of a representation or stipulation under para16 graph (1)(A) due to the actions of a subcontractor 

17 or supplier at any tier of the applicable contract or 

18 assistance if the contractor or recipient— 

19 (A) entered into a contract with the prime 

20 subcontractor or supplier in a good faith reli21 ance on a written assurance from the subcon22 tractor or supplier that all subcontractors and 

23 suppliers at any tier of the applicable contract 

24 or assistance would not employ oppressive child 


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1 labor in the performance of or work funded by 

2 the applicable contract or assistance; 

3 (B) had no notice that a subcontractor or 

4 supplier would employ oppressive child labor in 

5 such performance or work; and 

6 (C) has taken meaningful and affirmative 

7 steps to ensure that all subcontractors and sup8 pliers at any tier of the applicable contract or 

9 assistance would not employ oppressive child 

10 labor in such performance or work. 

11 (c) BREACH OR VIOLATION.— 

12 (1) APPLICABLE BREACH OR VIOLATION.—This 

13 subsection applies in the case of a breach or viola14 tion of a representation or stipulation required 

15 under subsection (b)(1)(A) in an applicable contract 

16 or assistance. 

17 (2) LIQUIDATED DAMAGES.—In addition to 

18 damages for any other breach of the applicable con19 tract or assistance, the party responsible for a 

20 breach or violation described in paragraph (1) is lia21 ble to the Federal Government for liquidated dam22 ages in an amount equal to the sum of $20 per day 

23 for each individual employed in oppressive child 

24 labor in the performance of or work funded by the 

25 applicable contract or assistance. 


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1 (3) CANCELLATION AND ALTERNATIVE COM2 PLETION.—In addition to the Federal Government 

3 being entitled to damages described in paragraph 

4 (2), the Federal Government may cancel the con5 tract or assistance and make open-market purchases 

6 or make other contracts or award other assistance 

7 for the completion of the original contract or terms 

8 of the original assistance, charging any additional 

9 cost to the original contractor or recipient. 

10 (4) RECOVERY OF AMOUNTS DUE.—An amount 

11 due the Federal Government because of a breach or 

12 violation described in paragraph (1) may be withheld 

13 from any amounts owed the contractor or recipient 

14 under the applicable contract or assistance or may 

15 be recovered in a suit brought by the Attorney Gen16 eral. 

17 (d) THREE-YEAR PROHIBITION ON NEW CONTRACTS

18 IN CASE OF BREACH OR VIOLATION.— 

19 (1) DISTRIBUTION LIST.—The Comptroller 

20 General of the United States shall distribute to each 

21 agency of the Federal Government a list containing 

22 the names of persons found by the Secretary to have 

23 breached or violated a representation or stipulation 

24 included in an applicable contract or assistance 

25 under subsection (b)(1)(A). 


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1 (2) THREE-YEAR PROHIBITION.—Unless the 

2 Secretary recommends otherwise, the Federal Gov3 ernment may not award any contract or other finan4 cial assistance to a person named on the list under 

5 paragraph (1), or to a firm, corporation, partner6 ship, or association in which the person has a con7 trolling interest, until 3 years have elapsed from the 

8 date of the determination by the Secretary that a 

9 breach or violation occurred. 

10 (e) ENFORCEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION.—Sections 

11 6506 and 6507 (other than subsection (a) of such section) 

12 of title 41, United States Code, govern the Secretary’s au13 thority to enforce this section, including the Secretary’s 

14 authority to prescribe regulations, issue orders, hold hear15 ings, make decisions based on findings of fact, and take 

16 other appropriate action under this section. 

17 TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS 

18 SEC. 301. REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON WORK-RELATED IN19 JURIES, ILLNESSES, AND DEATHS. 

20 (a) ANALYSIS OF DATA.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor, in 

22 consultation as described in paragraph (2), shall col23 lect and analyze data concerning overall trends for 

24 work-related injuries, illnesses, or deaths and trends 


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1 related to enforcement under Federal or State law 

2 with respect to such injuries, illnesses, or deaths. 

3 (2) CONSULTING ENTITIES.—In collecting and 

4 analyzing data under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

5 of Labor— 

6 (A) shall consult with the Secretary of 

7 Health and Human Services; and 

8 (B) may consult with any relevant State 

9 agencies. 

10 (b) REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after the 

11 date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

12 the Secretary of Labor shall— 

13 (1) submit a report to Congress that includes— 

14 (A) a summary of the data collected and 

15 analyzed by the Secretary under subsection (a) 

16 for the previous year; 

17 (B) an evaluation, based on such data, 

18 that reflects the status of work-related injuries, 

19 illnesses, and deaths; and 

20 (C) any recommendations for the President 

21 and Congress as a result of such evaluation; 

22 (2) publish such report in the Federal Register; 

23 and 


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1 (3) post such report on the website of the De2 partment of Labor. 

Æ 


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