Florida has passed a law to increase work hours for its teens

The state of Florida, through its House of Representatives, has approved legislation allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to work overtime. In this case, if they have classes on the next day, it will not be taken into account, the Andhra agency said.

80 voted in favor of the bill and 35 against. The trend of both parties was very clear; Republicans showed their support for the administration, while Democrats reflected their total rejection.

Republican Rep. Linda Chaney said young people in Florida are eager to find work and are often looking for ways to do so.

“There are almost a million searches on how to get a job as a teenager. They want to work. “This bill gets the government out of their way so they can choose the path that best suits them.”

Exploitation of minors?

That's what Democrats fear. A majority of its representatives argued that this new law would lead to the exploitation of minors in Florida.

They agreed that increasing working hours significantly affects the academic performance of adolescents.

Opponents of the law also argued that current labor laws already provide enough time for students to work and attend school.

“The most obvious problem is that we're seeing labor shortages in different sectors of the economy. Part of that is tied to the decisions this Legislature made on immigration,” said Rep. Anna Escamani.

If the regulations come into force, the existing restrictions will be lifted. Now, 16- and 17-year-olds are banned from working more than eight hours when there are classes the next day. This is what happens when they work more than 30 hours a week during the school year.