A Republican legislator in Louisiana has proposed a bill that aims to repeal a provision of current legislation that "provides for recreation or meal periods for minors," according to a summary of the proposal published in the legislature.
HB 156 was proposed by State Representative Roger Wilder, a Republican from District 71. The bill was under consideration by the local House Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations.
On Thursday, the committee approved the bill and will now advance to the full legislature for consideration, according to a report on NOLA.com, the newsroom of the Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate.
The bill secured the support of 10 lawmakers with 3 opposing, according to NOLA.com
Newsweek contacted Representative Wilder for comment via email on Thursday afternoon.
NOLA.com reported that Wilder lamented that the bill was being described as targeting child workers. He suggested that the law was about young adults.
Wilder, who represents the Denham Springs area, argued that other states don't have regulations that allow child workers to take breaks, according to NOLA.com.
Current law says that an employer is "required to provide at least one 30-minute meal period for minors who work for a 5-hour work period," according to a digest of HB156.
The summary also said that current regulation "does not require an employer to provide a 30-minute meal period in instances when the work period exceeds 5 hours by 10 minutes or less."
"Present law provides that an employer shall not be in violation of provisions of present law, if he provides at least a 20-minute meal break," it adds. "Present law requires each meal period to be documented by using the employer's normal timekeeping system."
The digest goes on to say that, "present law further requires a manager, if a minor fails to clock in or out for a work or meal period, to document any necessary time edits, which must be acknowledged by the minor and the manager who performed the time edit."
"Proposed law repeals present law," the digest said.
The House Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations that advanced the bill is made up of 12 Republicans and five Democrats.
The bill has not yet become law. It has now gone over to the Louisiana full House. It would also need to get approved by the Senate after which to become law the governor would also need to put his stamp of approval.
Update 4/18/24, 6:20 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to more context.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Omar Mohammed is a Newsweek reporter based in the Greater Boston area. His focus is reporting on the Economy and ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
