Current Events > Billionaire-backed lobbyist draft rollback of child labor laws effective next yr

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https://www.orlandoweekly.com/news/a-billionaire-backed-conservative-think-tank-is-trying-to-roll-back-florida-child-labor-law-35439934

A billionaire-backed conservative think tank is trying to roll back Florida child labor law

A conservative think tank in Florida thats lobbied Republicans in state legislatures across the country to relax child labor law also wrote legislation to accomplish a similar aim in Florida, new records show.
A bill filed in September by Florida Republican Linda Chaney, a member of the state House, would undo decades of child labor regulations by loosening restrictions on how late older teens in Florida can work. It would also prevent local governments from passing limitations stricter than the states. Its filing complements a growing movement to roll back labor regulations established to protect the health and safety of children.
Labor advocates have suspected that the Foundation for Government Accountability, a Naples-based group that drafted legislation to roll back child labor laws in other states, is behind Chaney's bill.
Now, public records originally obtained by More Perfect Union, including emails and text messages, prove it.

Emails show that the Foundation for Government Accountability, a dark money group funded by a bunch of ultra-conservatives and a billionaire mega-donor, doesnt just support Chaneys bill, but literally wrote it themselves.

They also provided Chaney, a Republican from St. Pete Beach, with talking points to counter the backlash it quickly received. State lawmakers, the majority of whom are Republicans, will consider the bill (HB 49) during an upcoming legislative session that begins Jan. 9, 2024.

Public records show a legislative aide for Chaney began communicating with the Foundation for Government Accountability over email about Youth Worker Freedom legislation in late July.
An initial email from the aide shows this communication came at the request of Chaney herself, who instructed her aide to follow up with the FGA about legislation concerning youth worker freedom. (Chaney's office did not respond to Orlando Weeklys request for comment on this story.)
The Naples think tank and its lobbying arm, the Opportunity Solutions Project is no stranger to child labor bills. Theyve directly lobbied Republicans in states like Arkansas, Missouri and Iowa to relax regulations on child labor law, explicitly framing it as an opportunity for businesses to address labor shortages.

At least 16 states, including Florida, have introduced legislation to roll back child labor regulations over the last two years, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

Ever connected to the conservative billionaire class, Seeking Rents found that DeSantis has received over $2 million in campaign donations over the last five years from the FGAs largest funder, Richard "Dick" Uihlen, who contributed $1 million to DeSantis' presidential super-PAC in May.
FGA policy memos sent to DeSantis staff beyond child labor rollbacks included proposals for fighting woke ideology and indoctrination in universities, as well as proposals that would allow the state to kick low-income people out of public housing after a certain period of time, and tighten eligibility requirements for people on food stamps. The group describes this as a way to break free from the shackles of government dependency.

The FGA's latest priority in Florida the child labor bill would go into effect July 1, 2024, if passed by the Republican-dominated state legislature.

Chaney, the House bill sponsor, has been relatively quiet about the bill since filing. She told the Orlando Sentinel in a statement last month that the bill intends to provide teenagers with the flexibility to work whatever hours they deem fits best with their schedule and financial goals.

The "Think of the children!" Party at work.

Just to point out that while the article is discussing their work in Florida they are doing it across the country.

Hard to illustrate the class war better than this

Democrats really need to bring this up. "We're the anti child labor party" is something you should make sure everyone knows.

action52 posted...

Democrats really need to bring this up. "We're the anti child labor party" is something you should make sure everyone knows.

The people who support this will never hear Democratic messaging. Their news outlets won't report it because they're too busy telling them to be outraged over Bud Light and M&Ms and Mr. Potato Head.

darkace77450 posted...

The people who support this will never hear Democratic messaging. Their news outlets won't report it because they're too busy telling them to be outraged over Bud Light and M&Ms and Mr. Potato Head.

Yeah but fence sitters somehow still fucking exist. More messaging could possibly maybe reach them.

action52 posted...

Democrats really need to bring this up. "We're the anti child labor party" is something you should make sure everyone knows.

Yeah, really draw a line in the sand on this. There are good reasons for existing child labor laws.

"Advocates" of watering down child labor laws aren't talking about 16 year olds working PT at a fast food joint after class or on weekends either. They're talking 16 (and sometimes as young as 14) year olds in factories, roofing and construction.

This shows the lengths some of these rich assholes will go to in order to avoid having to pay their workers a decent wage. I'm pretty sure they'd be trying to bring back slavery if they thought they could get away with it.

brestugo posted...

"Advocates" of watering down child labor laws aren't talking about 16 year olds working PT at a fast food joint after class or on weekends either. They're talking 16 (and sometimes as young as 14) year olds in factories, roofing and construction.

And they're talking about working full time and working night shifts. Some of these states are even barring lawsuits against employers in the case of on-job injuries to children.

Anything that benefits ordinary people or restricts their power to hoard economic resources and political power is offensive to them and they'll get rid of it if they can. Everything. EVERYTHING. No matter how universally supported it is, they'll roll it back if they feel they can. The 8 hour work day, the weekend, child labor, union rights, safety regulations, you name it. Whatever common sense, purely beneficial thing you think is safe is not safe.

Capital has fundamentally different interests than the rest of humanity, and the disproportionate power to put their anti-human desires on the agenda, and the media reach to get 25-48 percent of the public to support destroying their own rights. THAT'S why having billionaires at all is bad. And that's why the rest of us have to organize to fight them in every possible way.

UnsteadyOwl posted...

. I'm pretty sure they'd be trying to bring back slavery if they thought they could get away with it.

They will. Baby steps.

Feed the economy. Surrender your childhood. /s

darkace77450 posted...

The people who support this will never hear Democratic messaging. Their news outlets won't report it because they're too busy telling them to be outraged over Bud Light and M&Ms and Mr. Potato Head.

It's not about convincing hardcore right wingers to change their minds. Of course that's not gonna happen. It's about making the people who don't pay much attention to politics notice that there is a real difference between the parties. It's also about making people more motivated to vote, especially in primaries and local elections.

"Sir, think of the children!"

"The children..... that's right! An untapped cheap labor workforce!"

Southernfatman posted...

They will. Baby steps.

Literal babies stepping out into the fields.

darkace77450 posted...

The people who support this will never hear Democratic messaging. Their news outlets won't report it because they're too busy telling them to be outraged over Bud Light and M&Ms and Mr. Potato Head.

And drag queens. I guarantee you a lot of the people trying to get children mangled here are the selfsame ones pretending to defend them from drag queens.