There’s one main reason Iowa has child labor violations ten times higher than the national average.
In Part One, you heard our state has a much bigger problem with child labor than other states. And those of you who have been paying close attention to Iowa politics probably know why that is:
Iowa tried loosening child labor laws at the state level, despite the federal government—which has stricter laws and jurisdiction over child labor law—saying they would still enforce federal law.
The laws they changed:
In the last few years, Iowa Republicans passed laws that seemingly allowed Iowa businesses to flout federal child labor law:
- In 2022, they passed House File twenty-one ninety-eight (2198), which lowered the age of childcare providers to 16 and allowed them to watch more children at a time.
- In 2023, they passed Senate File five forty-two (542), a law that lowers the age for teenagers to do hazardous work like operating band saws, roofing, and serving alcohol down to 16 years old.
- In 2025, the Iowa Labor Services Decision made new rules lowering the fines companies pay for violating child labor rules.
Against the law…for now
Child labor laws fall under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the US Department of Labor in 2023 warned Iowa businesses that they had to follow the stricter federal law, or risk getting federal fines.
And then, predictably, they started fining Iowa businesses.
But Iowa Republicans got their ideas from Project 2025, holding out hope that a friendly president or courts would eventually side with them.
And, whaddya know, just this month, President Trump’s Department of Labor announced it was considering changes to child labor law, allowing teenagers as young as 14 to work longer hours and later into the evenings—something Iowa already has on the books.
