02/06/2025 03:15 PM House STATE AFFAIRS

                   HB  61-EMPLOYMENT OF MINORS                                                                              
4:58:36 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR CARRICK  announced that the  final order of  business would                                                               
be HOUSE BILL NO. 61 "An  Act relating to employment; relating to                                                               
voluntary flexible  work hour plans;  relating to  the employment                                                               
of minors;  and relating  to hours worked  by minors  employed in                                                               
the state."                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
4:59:25 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Cathy  Muoz,  Commissioner,  Department  of  Labor and  Workforce                                                               
Development  (DLWD),  introduced HB  61  on  behalf of  the  bill                                                               
sponsor, House Rules  by request of the governor.   She said that                                                               
HB  61  has  two  primary   components.    One  component  is  to                                                               
streamline  the permitting  process  for youth  employment.   She                                                               
explained that  youth aged  fourteen to  sixteen are  required to                                                               
get  a  work permit  for  employment  and the  legislation  would                                                               
remove  this  requirement  for  sixteen-year-olds.    The  second                                                               
component of  the legislation is  to provide  flexible scheduling                                                               
options for Alaska Workers.   She remarked that the bill provides                                                               
an  exemption to  the daily  overtime requirement  for flex  work                                                               
scheduling.  If the bill is  approved, this schedule could not be                                                               
mandated and  would still require  prior employee approval.   She                                                               
said that  in current  law, hospital nurses  are provided  a flex                                                               
schedule  option  but  not  other  workplaces.    She  said  that                                                               
flexible scheduling  is a way  that can help address  labor gaps.                                                               
She stated that  younger workers are very  interested in flexible                                                               
scheduling and  a work life  balance.  She  said that HB  61 also                                                               
provides  provisions   around  youth  employment  and   that  the                                                               
department currently  processes approximately 2,500  work permits                                                               
for sixteen-year-olds  each year and  it is an  unnecessary paper                                                               
push.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MS.  Muoz  paraphrased  the sectional  analysis [included  in the                                                               
committee  file]   and  remarked  that  Section   3  extends  the                                                               
exemption  for  youth  workers  in  family-owned  businesses  and                                                               
boats.  The  current law provides an exemption  only for parental                                                               
businesses.    She  noted  that  Section  4  would  change  total                                                               
allowable work  hours for sixteen-year-olds.   Lastly,  Section 5                                                               
would  remove the  requirement for  individual  work permits  and                                                               
gives  employers  the  option to  receive  blanket  approval  for                                                               
hiring multiple youth in the same capacity.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
5:04:04 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
TANYA KEITH,  Director, Division  of Labor and  Standards Safety,                                                               
Department of  Labor and Workforce  Development, presented  HB 61                                                               
on behalf  of the  bill sponsor,  House Rules  by request  of the                                                               
governor.   She stated  that the proposed  changes would  make it                                                               
better  for DLWD  to  meet  the needs  of  the  public and  focus                                                               
resources  on  efforts  that  protect   Alaska's  workers.    She                                                               
remarked that the purpose of HB 61  is to allow for work up to 12                                                               
hours a  day under a voluntary  work hour plan for  all employees                                                               
that are  currently capped  at 10  hours a day.   The  bill would                                                               
also  make  changes   to  the  youth  employment   law  to  allow                                                               
businesses  to   employ  fourteen-  and   fifteen-year-olds  with                                                               
written approval  from DLWD  and remove  the need  for individual                                                               
work  permits.     The  bill  would  also   exempt  sixteen-  and                                                               
seventeen-year-olds  in  family-owned   businesses  from  written                                                               
approval  requirements.   She noted  that sixteen-year-olds  have                                                               
the same  restrictions under child labor  laws as seventeen-year-                                                               
olds,  prohibition from  hazardous occupation  jobs.   She stated                                                               
that  the restrictions  for younger  employees are  much stricter                                                               
and only  certain jobs under  the law  are permitted.   She noted                                                               
that it  makes sense  to remove these  requirements and  focus on                                                               
younger age groups with stronger  limitations.  She noted that HB
 would also  increase daily allowable work  hours for fourteen-                                                               
and  fifteen-year-olds from  9 to  10 hours;  she clarified  that                                                               
school hours are  counted as work hours.  She  remarked that this                                                               
would allow  work full-time  while school is  not in  session and                                                               
currently labor laws do not allow this.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
5:06:47 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH  stated that  the first change  would be  flexible work                                                               
hours and allowing  employees to work twelve hours a  day under a                                                               
voluntary flexible work  hour plan.  The plan  would require that                                                               
overtime be paid for any work over  eight hours a day that is not                                                               
in the  approved plan.   It would  remain voluntary on  behalf of                                                               
the employer,  who could  not require the  employee to  work this                                                               
plan and not pay overtime.  She  noted that HB 61 would make this                                                               
plan available for all industries across Alaska.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH  discussed current  overtime laws.   She  remarked that                                                               
Alaska is a  dual overtime state, which means  that employees are                                                               
owed overtime for anything over eight  hours a day or forty hours                                                               
a week.   The voluntary flexible work hour  plan allows employees                                                               
a  partial exemption  from  daily  overtime when  it  is made  in                                                               
agreement with  the employee.  She  remarked that this must  be a                                                               
voluntary  agreement between  the employee  and the  employer and                                                               
require approval by  DWLD.  She reiterated that  time worked over                                                               
the agreement must be paid.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KEITH  discussed  flex  plans and  remarked  that  DLWD  has                                                               
received flex plans from 1,348  employers in the last four years.                                                               
She  said  that  once  received,   the  department  approves  the                                                               
schedule, the  employer gets back  the schedule and  can employee                                                               
as many  on that this plan  as needed.  The  department estimates                                                               
that  there  are between  5,300  and  13,500 employees  that  are                                                               
working alternate  work schedules  on this  plan, and  this could                                                               
even  be a  low  estimate.   She noted  that  the department  has                                                               
received 563 wage  claims, and of these claims, only  one of them                                                               
involved a  flexible work hour plan.   She stated that  it is one                                                               
of the  most successful initiatives  with DLWD and  remarked that                                                               
complaints  and  compliance issues  have  been  minimal, and  the                                                               
department is confident in a change to a twelve-hour plan.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
5:10:19 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KEITH discussed  the benefits  of a  twelve-hour work  plan.                                                               
For   employers,  flexible   staffing   options  and   consistent                                                               
scheduling for  24-hour facilities have  been important.   In the                                                               
healthcare industry,  being able  to offer  the same  salary that                                                               
hospitals  offer  has  helped with  recruitment.    Benefits  for                                                               
employees  include  a  schedule   that  has  a  better  work-life                                                               
balance,  reduced commuting  costs, eliminating  childcare needs,                                                               
and students could also see benefits  while in school.  She noted                                                               
the approximate childcare costs for an average family of three.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
5:11:29 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KEITH  talked  about  changes  in  youth  employment.    She                                                               
remarked  that HB  61 would  exempt sixteen-year-olds  working in                                                               
family-owned  businesses from  the  approval  requirements.   She                                                               
reiterated that  sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds are  subject to                                                               
the same labor  limitations and that the  employment of fourteen-                                                               
year-olds is  much more  restrictive.   She stated  that focusing                                                               
approval processes  on these  younger groups  is warranted.   She                                                               
noted that  the proposed legislation  would move  the requirement                                                               
for  employers  to  send  individual   approval  inquiries  to  a                                                               
registration system  for approval.   It would increase  the total                                                               
number of workable hours and add  an exemption to the weekly work                                                               
limitations to allow full-time work.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
5:13:00 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT  asked about Slide  6.  She  asked about                                                               
limitations  regarding  twelve hour  shifts  and  if an  employer                                                               
builds  a schedule  on 12-hour  shifts,  whether applicants  that                                                               
want 8-hour shifts should refrain from applying.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH  responded that  12-hour shifts  cannot be  an employer                                                               
requirement.   Any employer that  issues twelve-hour  shifts must                                                               
also offer eight-hour shift arrangements.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   HIMSCHOOT  asked   about  Slide   7  and   youth                                                               
employment.   She asked  if a student  works two  different part-                                                               
time jobs, who  tracks the total hours and  how accountability is                                                               
held.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH  responded that youth are  allowed by law to  work only                                                               
nine hours  between both  school and  work.   She noted  that she                                                               
hasn't heard  of a fourteen-year-old  having more than  one part-                                                               
time job.   She remarked that  nobody would track the  work hours                                                               
in this instance.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT  asked that  if a  child is  working too                                                               
many  hours, whether  it is  up to  the family  to work  with the                                                               
employer.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KEITH responded  that  this  is a  reason  for the  proposed                                                               
legislation.   She offered  that currently  the parents  sign the                                                               
work  permit, and  it gets  turned in  for processing  and it  is                                                               
taken back  to the employer.   She  remarked that there  is never                                                               
any assertion  of the  requirements outside  of the  work permit.                                                               
Allowing this  new registration process would  ensure parents are                                                               
informed of  work limitations  and other  employment regulations.                                                               
She  stated that  it will  allow  the department  to ensure  that                                                               
employers  can  understand the  regulations  and  allow for  more                                                               
oversight.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE HIMSCHOOT asked if this  was not possible to do in                                                               
regulation.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MS.  KEITH responded  that the  statute requires  that individual                                                               
work permits be  submitted for every child.  She  stated that the                                                               
amount of work  permits received is overwhelming.   In May, June,                                                               
and  July,  it takes  four  investigators  just to  process  work                                                               
permits.    She  remarked  that  some of  the  oversight  is  not                                                               
happening because  of paperwork  processing.  She  explained that                                                               
the department  wants to eliminate  this backlog and  ensure safe                                                               
working environments for children.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
5:17:46 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR CARRICK thanked presenters.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
5:18:15 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   STORY  asked   for  clarification   for  written                                                               
permits.   She asked  whether this  is an  online process  and if                                                               
efforts underway to do so.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH recapped  the process where the employer  must fill out                                                               
the permit, receive  signatures from parents.   She explained the                                                               
change of hands regarding work permits.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  STORY asked  how  the department  keeps track  of                                                               
permits.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MS. KEITH remarked  that it is a process, and  a database is used                                                               
to  store the  permits.   She stated  that some  applications get                                                               
sent  back to  fix errors.    She mentioned  that the  department                                                               
processes over  600 child labor  applications for  McDonalds that                                                               
are  all the  same  type of  employment.   She  stated that  some                                                               
applications received from them are filled out incorrectly.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
5:20:20 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR CARRICK said  that additional questions can be  sent to her                                                               
office.                                                                                                                         
[HB 61 was held over]