General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Dept of Labor: Kids can't work on family farms.... [View all]obamanut2012
(26,076 posts)I have many friends who were "farm kids," mainly tobacco, soybeans, and dairy. They were unpaid farmhands, who worked several hours a day on the family farms, including school days. They did things only adults should do, back-breaking and dangerous labor. Unpaid. We aren't talking about just some chores, like feeding the pigs and mucking out Lady's stall, or raising a prize goat for 4-H.
Certain provisions need to be made for some 4-H and FFA activities, but this would be a good law.
There's a reason why kids used to only be able to read, write, ad cipher a bit. and why they only went to school during the Winter, and then only for a few years. This was also a time when a father could legally make his sons work for him until they turned 21. Almanzo Wilder lived a long time ago, and the reality wasn't -- and isn't -- as romantic as "Famer Boy."