Florida Could Allow 14-Year-Olds To Work Overnight Shifts As Immigration Crackdown Reduces Workforce

Florida could loosen child labor laws as it seeks to compensate a reduced workforce resulting from the Trump and DeSantis administrations' immigration crackdowns.

The Republican-controlled legislature is debating the measure, which could allow children as young as 14 to work overnight shifts, the Miami Herald reported.

"Why do we say we need to import foreigners, even import them illegally, when you know, teenagers used to work at these resorts, college students should be able to do this stuff," DeSantis said last week while talking with Trump border czar Tom Homan.

"What's wrong with expecting our young people to be working part-time now? I mean, that's how it used to be when I was growing up," the governor added.

Concretely, the measure would remove all limitations on how late and how much 16 and 17-year-olds can work, meaning they can work more than eight hours a day on school nights and over 30 hours a week when the school is in session. It would also remove restrictions for those aged 14 and 15 if they are home schooled or attend virtual school.

Republican State Senator Jay Collins, who is sponsoring the bill, said most of the jobs are in safe environment. "We're talking about them working at Publix, at Piggly Wiggly or jobs within the industry," he said. "This is a parental rights thing. Parents know their kids best."

In contrast, Democratic state Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith said the bill is "going to lead to exploitation of minors, exploitation of children."

A report from October last year said that about a million Floridians could be removed from the country if the Trump administration follows through with its promise to conduct mass deportations.

Conducted by the American Immigration Council (AIC), the study claims the measure could affect about one in every 20 residents of Florida, a state with a notably high proportion of undocumented immigrants compared to the national average.

Florida's undocumented population accounts for about 5% of the states' total residents, compared to 3.3% nationwide, as reported by the immigration advocacy group.

In fact, the state's existing anti-immigration law, Senate Bill 1718 (SB 1718), has already led to an exodus of undocumented workers and noticeable labor shortages.

SB 1718, which went into effect one year ago, requires private companies with 25 or more employees to use the federal E-Verify system to check new hires' legal status, prompting many workers without documentation to leave.