Letting young teens work without parental permission not the key to solving Wisconsin’s labor shortage

Four years after the pandemic began, Wisconsin still has a labor problem. There simply aren’t enough workers to fill all the open positions. So Republicans in Madison came up with a plan they say would help fill the labor gap. They passed a bill that would have done away with work permit requirements for our youngest workers. Under the proposal passed by the Legislature, 14 and 15-year-olds in Wisconsin would not need to get a work permit, or the permission of their parents, to enter the workforce. That would be true for those working as a busboy, or even in dangerous manufacturing jobs. Wisely, Governor Tony Evers yesterday vetoed the bill. He says he vetoed it because the bill would have eliminated the process that ensures children are protected from employers who may exploit them or subject them to dangerous conditions. Evers is right when he says asking more kids to work is not a serious solution to the state’s workforce issues. It isn’t likely this bill would have done much to close the labor gaps anyway. How many moms and dads would allow their teenage children to work if the state can’t protect the health and safety of our youngest workers?