Congress moves to let teens work 24 hours weekly during school year

What it does

This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act to allow 14- and 16-year-olds to work up to 24 hours per week during school weeks, with work hours capped between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. Currently, federal law restricts teen work hours during the school year to protect education and safety. This bill loosens that restriction, allowing employers to schedule more hours for working teenagers without triggering the law's 'oppressive child labor' protections.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a carve-out from federal child-labor protections. It does not ban teen work or create new rights; it removes an existing safeguard (the Secretary's authority to restrict hours as oppressive) and replaces it with a bright-line exemption (24 hrs/week, 7am–9pm). This is deregulation of teen labor standards.

What the text implies

• The 24-hour weekly limit applies only 'in a week during any part of which school is in session'—weeks with school breaks or summer are not covered, potentially allowing unlimited hours outside the school calendar.
• The bill does not address cumulative fatigue, homework time, or sleep deprivation; a teen working 24 hours/week plus full-time school attendance may face cognitive and health impacts not captured by the hourly cap alone.
• Employers in retail, food service, and hospitality—sectors with high teen employment—gain scheduling flexibility during peak school-year demand periods (evenings, weekends) without triggering oppressive-labor findings.
• The 7 a.m. start time is earlier than many school start times, creating potential conflicts between work and school attendance or morning preparation.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Working teenagers lose federal protections against excessive hours during school weeks. The bill shifts the balance from education-protective limits toward employer scheduling flexibility, allowing minors to work substantially more while attending school—a trade-off that prioritizes labor supply over teen welfare, education quality, and rest.

Who stands to gain

• retail employers
• food service and hospitality chains
• fast-casual restaurants
• convenience stores
• seasonal employers with teen workforces

Named in the bill

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, Section 3(l) FLSA, U.S. Department of Labor, Secretary of Labor, 14- and 16-year-old employees

Where it stands

2 cosponsors: 2 Republicans.

• May 21, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• May 21, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

1 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $1,620,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 34 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.

Dusty Johnson, the sponsor, reported $325,500 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• National Restaurant Association — $1,620,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.