Arkansas: No need to age verify kids working in meat processing plants

by robarron 3/13/2023, 2:54 PMwith 17 comments

by knackyon 3/13/2023, 5:20 PM

AK is the abbreviation for Alaska. Should be AR for Arkansas.

by maxericksonon 3/13/2023, 10:04 PM

A problem with all of these discussions about child labor laws is the huge status quo bias.

Like if a law isn't working to protect children, it's a good thing to change it! How do we talk about that if every discussion starts with how horrifying it is to change the laws that protect children.

When I looked at the Arkansas change, it didn't really seem like a big deal. Previously parents had to fill out a form and send it to the state and wait for approval. A form isn't going to stop a parent from describing the duties inaccurately or ensure that the employer actually sticks to the description that the parents agreed to. The way things go, the state agency probably felt a lot of pressure to rubber stamp them. And so on.

I'm not sure I analyzed it well, but apparently we can't even talk about it, because change is bad.

by cosmin800on 3/13/2023, 10:50 PM

Just because one wrong thing is allowed, I guess other should be? Or should not?

by julienfr112on 3/13/2023, 4:57 PM

obvious ! meatplants working kids are poor kids. Online kids are rich kids.

by mostertoasteron 3/13/2023, 8:34 PM

This could maybe interpreted as saying the online world is more dangerous than a meat packing plant. That doesn’t seem too far-fetched.