(The Center Square) – Younger Ohio teenagers won’t get to work later on school nights after all.
Late Wednesday night, Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed a bill that would have allowed 14- and 15-year-olds to work until 9 p.m. on school nights, adding two additional hours to the current state and federal work limits.
“I believe it unwise to provide for 14- and 15-year-olds to work, on a school night, that late at night,” DeWine, a Republican, said in a veto message issued after 10 p.m. on Wednesday. “I see no compelling reason to deviate from current law.”
Ohio lawmakers began pushing for the change more than two years ago, when Sen. Tim Schaffer, R-Lancaster, first introduced the bill as a way to help Ohio businesses facing workforce shortages.
He introduced the bill again this year, and it passed the Senate in April and the House of Representatives late last month. Both chambers are majority Republicans.
The bill had support from the National Federation of Independent Business-Ohio, Americans for Prosperity, and the Ohio Restaurant and Hospitality Alliance.
Schaffer again pushed it as a way to help small businesses and as a learning tool for younger teens.
He also introduced Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 that encouraged federal lawmakers to change the Fair Labor Standards Act, allowing for later working hours for 14- and 15-year-olds. It also passed the Senate and House, but it does not carry the weight of law.
“These bills encourage kids to further develop good working skills and help employers across Ohio with their staffing challenges,” Schaffer said in the spring. “Let’s be clear, these pieces of legislation reinforce the guardrails protecting 14- and 15-year-olds that are already in code. The changes made in these bills help our small businesses that struggle to find adequate staffing and encourage kids to learn good work habits.”
Younger teens are permitted by law to work later hours in the summer and during longer school breaks. Thirteen states allow for younger teenagers to work until 7 p.m., but Ohio won’t be one of them unless the General Assembly votes to override the veto.
“I believe the current law has served us well and has effectively balanced the importance of 14- and 15-year-old children learning to work, with the importance of them having time to study,” DeWine said in his message.
