Child labor problem ever more serious in U.S.: media

NEW YORK, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Lawmakers in several U.S. states, including Kansas, Ohio, Iowa and Minnesota, are rushing to relax child labor laws to make it easier for teenagers to work longer hours, later hours, and more dangerous jobs, arguing these measures are needed because many businesses face difficulties finding enough workers, reported itemlive.com on Wednesday.

"It's hard to imagine a worse time to roll back restrictions on child labor, as U.S. schoolchildren moved backward academically during the pandemic," said the report.

Studies have found that students who work 20 or more hours a week are more likely to drop out of school and have their grades decline, not to mention that they're often too exhausted to do schoolwork or stay awake in class, according to the report.

The U.S. Labor Department said the child labor problem is growing. It found more than 3.5 times as many minors employed illegally last year as in 2015. "The official data may represent only a tiny share of such cases because reporting and enforcement are difficult, and companies often do whatever it takes to hide these violations," said the report.

"There are numerous obstacles to effective enforcement of child labor law: Many teenagers use false IDs, Labor Department inspectors in many states say their offices are badly understaffed, and there's a flood of unaccompanied immigrant teens crossing the border who are desperate to find jobs," it added.