Child Labor?

[lockedoutalter]

I found out something that I find incredibly distressing but I want to make sure I’m not just blowing this out of proportion. I recently found out that a local farm has hired a 16yo to be a live-in working student/barn manager. The child was transported here over state lines and deposited by her “parents” who just up and left. The child is not attending school but is supposedly going to get a GED at some time. Is this even legal? Even when I worked at farms with younger working students they still attended school and only did minimal work.

The BO just left to go to Florida and the other trainer is off traveling to shows,so this kid is there with minimal supervision.

ADDITIONALLY, the kid has zero horse experience. Doesn’t know how to put on blankets…nothing. Is there someone I can contact? I am deeply concerned about this poor kid.

[soloudinhere]

At least in my state, truancy laws only apply to students under age 16.

The rest of it is a problem, but it is not illegal for a parent to pull a child out of school at age 16 in my state, nor is it illegal for a child of that age to work on a farm.

[mmeqcenter]

I’ll agree with soloudinhere on all fronts. You’ll want to check your state labor laws.
Federal labor laws:
https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/youthlabor/agerequirements

Though likely not illegal, it is certainly a safety hazard any clients of the barn should be aware of. I know I would not be happy with an inexperienced kid handling my horses. In fact, I’ve experienced it before, and my mare smacked her face on a ceiling beam and wound up with a swollen shut eye due to their negligence. Thankfully the kid didn’t handle my horse after that, but it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.

[S1969]

Two separate issues - I agree with the posts above that the kid is likely beyond compulsory education age. Not definitely, depending on the state, but at 16…probably there or close to it. What state are you in/what state did they come from?

Once a child is beyond the compulsory education requirements, “child labor” rules should not apply. If they are old enough to not be in school legally, they better be old enough to work full time legally.

Whether the kid is qualified for the job, that’s another story altogether. Sounds like the situation they are in now might not be worse than the one they were in previously. Hope this kid’s life gets better.

[Palm_Beach]

I can’t imagine a competition barn that travels leaving a 16 yr old with “zero horse experience” in charge. A lot of the original post does not make sense to me, I think the OP has misinformation or is lacking in information. How did OP “find out” all about this kid? Why is the word “parents” in quotation marks?

[Altag]

Is this a boarding board? If so, does your state (or county) have licensing laws that might apply, such as adequate number of staff or possibly requirements that there be an individual over 18 supervising? Maybe check with your state agricultural board/department on whether barns are licensed and what regulations apply.

[findeight]

Need to get complete information before making any judgements. Maybe things going on here not shared with the local horse community. But, as stated, a 16 year old is not subject to the same standards as younger children, particularly on farms with parental consent.

[Mango20]

Most child labor laws have loopholes for exceptions for farm labor. Also, online school is a lot more popular these days, so that might be what this child is doing at the same time as being the working student. You might not be fully informed about the school part of the deal and should probably ask the kid personally so you get the full story. I agree that this situation sounds bad for the kid and for the horses, but you should probably make sure you have all the facts before doing anything further. There might not be any laws broken.

[poltroon]

It sounds like this child could use an advocate, and if you can make friends and get a sense of the situation, maybe you can help. In my state, a 16 year old without a diploma or GED would be legally obligated to be in school of some kind, and 16 year olds generally need work permits. My state has all this information online.

The ag exclusion in California is ONLY if minors are working for their parents or guardians.

Parents or guardians who employ their children in agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, or domestic labor on or in connection with property the parent or guardian owns, operates, or controls do not require permits. [LC 1394]

Minors who are self-employed do not require permits.

Minors irregularly employed in odd jobs in private homes, such as baby-sitting, lawn mowing, and leaf raking, do not need to obtain a Permit to Employ and Work. [18 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen. 114, August 31, 1951]

Minors engaged in the sale and distribution of newspapers or magazines are often self- employed, and thus do not require permits. Minors who are at least 14 years of age and employed to deliver newspapers to consumers do not require permits, whether or not they are self-employed. [EC 49112 (d)]

Requirements for this occupation are detailed in Chapter 7 of this digest.

Minors of any age who participate in any horseback riding exhibition, contest, or event, whether or not they receive payment for services or prize money do not need to obtain a Permit to Employ and Work. [EC 49119 and 49165; LC 1308(b) (3)]

https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/ChildLaborLawPamphlet.pdf - California. There’s probably a doc like this in your state.

[Mango20]

In my state, there is a list of activities that are not considered employment if performed outside school hours. This includes “farm worked performed on a farm” as well as some oddly specific ones like manufacturing of evergreen wreaths, and being an instructor on an instructional sailboat.

[findeight]

Maybe the kid does have a work permit if the state she’s in requires it? We don’t know she’s not taking online courses or if she’s in a state where 16 year olds are not required to continue schooling and we have no clue what the arrangement is between parents who dropped her off and trainer she’s working for. Is she a working Student? And is this the barn OP boards at or another barn in the area???

[soloudinhere]

In my state work permits are required under 18 but they’re issued by the superintendent who needs parent permission and a job offer, there’s no other vetting that takes place.

[JustTheTicket]

Do you even have anything to do with this local farm, OP? Or did you just hear the local gossip and now want to get involved in something without knowing all the facts? Think hard before you insert yourself in a situation that doesn’t concern you.It might not actually be what you heard it is.

[trubandloki]

@poltroon

It sounds like this child could use an advocate, and if you can make friends and get a sense of the situation, maybe you can help. In my state, a 16 year old without a diploma or GED would be legally obligated to be in school of some kind, and 16 year olds generally need work permits. My state has all this information online.

At what age is someone allowed to simply drop out of school in your state?

[ISR]

There was a young girl about the same age in my area who was “adopted” by a barn owner. She had a terrible home life, a lot of drugs involved, and had dropped out of school. And while I believe the barn owner may have been exploiting her for labor, she also provided more stability than her biological family and certainly more stability than the foster system for a girl of her age. Life can be complicated.

[DrBeckett]

Agriculture (which horse farms fall under) have different labor laws for just about everyone, especially children. There are thousands of children who are working as migrant workers. People working in agriculture are not forced to pay minimum wage to anyone. It’s a completely different work environment than any other.

In Pennsylvania, where I grew up, a 16 year old was allowed to drop out of school without parental approval.

[Foxtrot_s]

Assuming she really IS 16 years old.

[Guilherme]

@Mango20

Most child labor laws have loopholes for exceptions for farm labor. Also, online school is a lot more popular these days, so that might be what this child is doing at the same time as being the working student. You might not be fully informed about the school part of the deal and should probably ask the kid personally so you get the full story. I agree that this situation sounds bad for the kid and for the horses, but you should probably make sure you have all the facts before doing anything further. There might not be any laws broken.

This. While the whole thing smells like old fish sometimes old fish is actually legal.

You can always call your state child protective services (whatever they might be called) and make a report. Let them deal with it; they will know what or what’s not legal.

I do feel bad for a kid in these circumstances, though.

G.

[poltroon]

@trubandloki

At what age is someone allowed to simply drop out of school in your state?

18, or you have to pass the equivalency exam. Less than that and you are subject to truancy law and all the fun that entails. But there are alternatives to the standard public high school.

The thing I’d like to add that may not have been clear in my original post here is that on one hand, this child is vulnerable. But, I obviously know even less than the OP. The child may be better off here with the BO and even possibly taking a break from school (shh I never said that!) regardless of what the law is depending upon the circumstances. The letter of the law is not always going to be what is right. It’s worth treading cautiously.

On the other hand, girls this age are especially… usable… by adults. School is important. She may not have an adult she can trust or any way to assert her own autonomy. She may not know what her rights are or have any sense of a better place to be even if she is not comfortable there. Or she may be too comfortable.

All that’s to say: don’t barge around without getting the lay of the land. You could do harm. But, probably if she needs to be levered out of there, she can be, with one bit of law or another. Whether she’d end up in a better place is not guaranteed.

That there are no adults in the vicinity acting as guardian is… troubling.

[Palm_Beach]

At what point is any of this the OP’s business??? Nowhere does the OP indicate the child is underfed, malnourished, living in a stall, illiterate, abused or neglected. Here is what OP says, "The child was transported here over state lines and deposited by her “parents” who just up and left. " And the OP is an alter, with under 200 posts in 4 years. I think OP knows more than what is being said, and just wants gossip fodder for the barn.