 "Most kids my age don't even have jobs," said Taylor, who assists
her father at one southwest Oklahoma farm and her grandparents at
another. "We already know what hard work is."Many other young
kids won't be allowed to do those kinds of chores if the U.S. Labor
Department approves new rules on children working in agriculture.
While the Mullers would likely be exempt because it's a family
business, the proposed rules would prohibit most children under age
16 from driving tractors, using power equipment, working with
livestock in certain circumstances and doing work at heights over 6
feet.
Federal officials say the rules are needed because farming is one
of the nation's most dangerous occupations, but many farmers say
children learn important life lessons and might develop an interest
in agriculture by working on farms or ranches.
Muller's dad, Matt, says he worries about what the new rules
might mean for the future of farming.
"It's very disheartening to me," he said. "Farming is not just a
business. It's a way of life."
Michael Hancock, the assistant administrator for policy at the
Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division, said the rules covering
child farm workers haven't been updated in more than 40 years and
that changes are needed to address the dangers of working with
tractors and other large farm machines. Farming, he said, is "the
single most hazardous occupation, as measured by fatalities, for
children."
Nearly 29 out of every 100,000 farm workers in the U.S. die on
the job, according to the National Safety Council. Among workers
ages 15 to 24, the rate is about 21 deaths per 100,000 workers.
Statistics for workers younger than 15 aren't available because
there isn't enough data on them.
Hancock compared the proposed rules, which mostly apply to farm
employees between the ages of 12 and 16, to those prohibiting a
teenager from operating a meat slicer in a restaurant or a cardboard
compactor in a grocery store.
"There's any number of things kids can do on a farm that will be
totally unaffected by these regulations," Hancock said. For
instance, he said, they can still detassel corn, haul hay and feed
cattle.
Hancock also said he supports the proposed exemptions in the
rules for children working on their parents' farms or on farms where
a parent is a main operator.
"If the parents are responsible for what goes on, on that farm,
they're uniquely able to judge those risks," Hancock said.
Nebraska farmer Shane Meyer worries those exemptions won't cover
someone like him because the farm with about 2,500 hogs that he runs
near Beatrice, Neb., is owned by someone else.
The rules may not be much of a problem for Meyer's boys, who do
yardwork and help care for the hogs, because one is already 16 and
the other will turn 16 next year, but they would make it hard for
him to hire any of his employees' or neighbors' kids.
"It's not the farms that are going to suffer. It's the kids," he
said.
Agricultural groups say the parental exemption raises a lot of
questions because many farms or ranches today are technically owned
by limited liability corporations or other entities even if they are
run by families. They say the proposed rules simply aren't clear
about how they would apply to various ownership structures.
[to top of second column]
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Matt Muller, who grows wheat and cotton on about 2,000 acres near
Altus, Okla., said young cousins and nephews have helped out on his
farm, but that might not be possible under the new rules. Plus, he
wouldn't be able to hire neighbor kids.
He also wonders how his children would be affected if he and his
wife switched the ownership to a limited liability corporation.
A fourth-generation farmer with four children under age 16,
Muller said he hopes they will follow him into the business but
worries they won't if they don't get interested in farming early. He
grew up driving tractors and sweeping out grain bins and said it's a
lifestyle he doesn't think labor officials understand.
"They may have legitimate safety concerns, but I don't think
they've spent much time on a farm," he said.
For instance, the proposed rules would prohibit the use of any
sort of electronic or communication device while operating a
tractor, but it's common practice to use two-way radios or
cellphones to communicate between tractors, trucks and combines in
the field. And many modern tractors come equipped with GPS systems
and other electronics that teens might not be able to use.
The National Pork Producers Council, Farm Bureau chapters in
several states and other major agriculture groups have organized to
oppose the proposed rules. Officials in agricultural states also
have questioned the wisdom of the changes.
Iowa Cattlemen chief executive Matt Deppe said he believes the
new rules would make it harder for young people to get the hands-on
experience they need to become interested in agriculture.
"I see them as creating a barrier for young people interested in
the business," said Deppe, who grew up on a farm and learned to
drive a tractor at age 10.
And Mike Spradling, Oklahoma Farm Bureau president, who raises
pecans near Sand Springs, said he didn't think the rules are needed,
because farmers and ranchers aren’t likely to assign teenagers to
the most dangerous jobs.
"Having young people around to help with the daily chores is a
big help, and it frees up employees to do some of the more dangerous
work," he said,
The Labor Department can only regulate employer-employee
relationships, so Hancock said the proposed rules shouldn't affect
4-H, Future Farmers of America or other educational programs. And,
they may not keep children from helping on their grandparents' or
uncle's farms if they aren't paid.
"I think there is a clear path forward for kids who want to
pursue agriculture as a career," Hancock said.
[Associated Press;
By JOSH FUNK]
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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