WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor has published a proposed rule that would toughen rules against the use of child labor on farms and in other agriculture-related occupations.

“Children employed in agriculture are some of the most vulnerable workers in America,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in a statement. “Ensuring their welfare is a priority of the department and this proposal is another element of our comprehensive approach.”

The proposed rule would strengthen regulations against minors working with animals, pesticides, lumber and in manure pits, as well as in storage bins. It would prohibit young people under the age of 16 from working with tobacco.

It would also prevent minors in farm and non-farm jobs from using electronic devices, including communications devices, while operating power-driven equipment. 

Non-farm occupations affected by the rule would include the storing, marketing and transporting of farm product raw materials. 

That would mean minors could no longer work in grain elevators, grain bins, silos, feed lots, stockyards, livestock exchanges and livestock auctions.

It would prohibit workers under 16 from operating almost all power-driven equipment, though there would be limited exceptions for “student learners.” They could operate some equipment, such as a tractor, as long as they are fitted with the proper safety equipment.

None of the proposed regulations would affect minors working on farms owned by their parents.

The proposed rule, published Sept. 2 in the Federal Register, details and summarizes what the WHD is proposing and why. It offers some disturbing statistics about employment in agriculture and ag-related jobs, especially among youth.

First, it says agriculture is the most dangerous occupation in the country for adults, with 28.6 deaths per 100,000 workers. One of the reasons the occupations are so dangerous is the nature of the workplace doesn’t allow for specialization, and so it’s difficult to train people effectively.

It adds that agriculture, forestry and fishing employed fewer than 2 percent of the U.S. workforce between 1996-2001, yet accounted for 13 percent of all fatal workplace injuries. During the 1990s, only 4 percent of youth were employed in agriculture, yet they experienced more than 40 percent of all the fatal injuries.

For young workers, the most common cause of a fatal accident is the operation of farm machinery, and of those the most common incident involves tractors, with the most common type of tractor accident being a rollover.

“Nationally, between 1992 and 1997, nearly a third of the deaths of youth in agriculture could be attributed to involvement with tractors – in about half of these cases, the tractor overturned on the youth. These statistics are compelling, given that Department of Labor regulations, with some exceptions, prohibit hired farm workers under the age of 16 from operating a tractor of over 20 horsepower …” the proposed rule states.

But terrible accidents can happen in other venues, too. In 2010, a 14-year-old and a 17-year-old were engulfed in grain while working at a grain elevator in Illinois. The same thing happened to a 17-year-old in 2009 at a grain elevator in Colorado. The department has investigated 13 grain elevators, some of them triggered by similar deaths or injuries, since 2000.

The department has also investigated feedlots and animal auctions for illegally employing youth. Recently, a 15-year-old girl was seriously hurt while working with cattle for transport. A calf pressed her against a corral, knocked her down and stomped on her. She suffered a lacerated liver, broken ribs, a cracked femur and a crushed bile duct and was in the hospital for more than five weeks.

Her employment was already illegal under current regulations; the department would like to prohibit the employment of 16- to 17-year-olds in such jobs, as well.

The entire proposed rule, which is 50 pages, can be found online by searching the Federal Register for Sept. 2 at www.gpoaccess.gov/fr