The U.S. House of
Representatives has approved legislation that would raise the maximum fine for
violating the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Child
Protection Act of 2007 (H.R. 2637) would raise the maximum fine for violations that
result in the serious injury or death of an employee under age 18 from $11,000
to $50,000. The measure would also permit the U.S. Department of Labor to
double the fine to $100,000 for repeated or willful violations.
The bill defines “serious
injury” as follows:
• Permanent loss or
substantial impairment of one of the senses;
• Permanent loss or
substantial impairment of the function of a bodily member, organ, or mental
faculty, including the loss of all or part of an arm, leg, foot, hand, or other
body part; or
• Permanent paralysis or
substantial impairment that causes loss of movement or mobility of an arm, leg,
foot, hand, or other body part.
The legislation now goes
to the Senate for consideration. We’ll keep you posted on this measure’s
status. In the meantime, you can link to H.R. 2637 at http://thomas.loc.gov.
Join us this fall in San Francisco for the California Employment Law Update conference, a 3-day event that will teach you everything you need to know about new laws and regulations, and your compliance obligations, for the year ahead—it’s one-stop shopping at its best.