Amish Sawmill Bill

[Lederman Marty]

Senator Specter on October 8th introduced S.2579, which would provide a sawmill exemption to the FLSA that does not contain the House bill's requirement that the minor belong to a religious sect or division, to wit:

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S.2579, a Bill To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to permit certain youth to perform certain work with wood products.

   Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. EXEMPTION.

   Section 13(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
213(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
   "(6)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), in the administration and
enforcement of the child labor provisions of this Act, it shall not be
considered oppressive child labor for an individual who-
   "(i) is under the age of 18 and over the age of 14, and
   "(ii) by statute or judicial order is exempt from compulsory school attendance beyond the eighth grade,
   to be employed inside or outside places of business where machinery
is used to process wood products.
   "(B) The employment of an individual under subparagraph (A) shall be
permitted-
   "(i) if the individual is supervised by an adult relative of the
individual or is supervised by an adult member of the same religious
sect or division as the individual;
   "(ii) if the individual does not operate or assist in the operation
of power-driven woodworking machines;
   "(iii) if the individual is protected from wood particles or other
flying debris within the workplace by a barrier appropriate to the
potential hazard of such wood particles or flying debris or by
maintaining a sufficient distance from machinery in operation; and
   "(iv) if the individual is required to use personal protective
equipment to prevent exposure to excessive levels of noise and saw
dust.".

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Marty Lederman