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These days, being a teenager isn\u2019t easy. Teens\u2019 overburdened schedules often include juggling afterschool activities, sports practice, and homework, which combined with working part time for extra spending money or to contribute to household expenses, leaves many teens feeling overworked, stressed, and stretched to the limit.<\/p>\n
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, close to a quarter of all U.S. high school students participate in the workforce. \u00a0Legislators are well aware of the hectic pace of adolescence, and most states place limits on the amount of hours teens can work, with 20 hours a week the standard limit. Despite the considerable evidence working over the 20 hour limit leads to slipping grades, increased dropout rates, and other behavioral problems, states like Missouri and Maine have recently introduced legislation that would repeal many child labor protections or increase the amount of hours teens are allowed to work.<\/p>\n
Research has consistently shown that working over the standard 20 hour a week limit negatively affects teens in a variety of ways:<\/p>\n
Academic & behavioral problems.<\/strong>\u00a0Researchers from the University of Washington, the University of Virginia, and Temple University issued a recent report finding that working more than 20 hours a week during the school year leads to academic and behavior problems. [Source: Monahan, Lee & Steinberg,\u00a0Child Development<\/em>, January\/February 2011.]<\/p>\n Dropping out.<\/strong>\u00a0A study published in the\u00a0Sociology of Education<\/em>\u00a0demonstrates that working more than 20 hours each week leads to higher dropout rates [Source: D\u2019Amico,\u00a0Sociology of Education<\/em>, 57]<\/p>\n Sports & after school activities.<\/strong>\u00a0Youth who work long hours may also be unable to take full advantage of valuable extra curricula and community activities that promote learning and school engagement [Source: McNeal 1995; Osgood 1999; Schoenhals et al.\u00a0Sociology of Education<\/em>, 83, 1998].<\/p>\n Youth work and college.<\/strong>\u00a0Research suggests that high school student who don\u2019t work at all\u00a0or<\/em>\u00a0work more than 20 hours are less likely to go to college than students who work 1-20 hours. [Source: U.S. Department of Labor.\u00a0Report on the Youth Labor Force<\/em>. (2000).]<\/p>\n Lack of sleep.<\/strong>\u00a0According to the National Sleep Foundation, more than one quarter of high school students fall asleep in class now. Four in 10 adolescents go to bed after 11:00 pm on school nights. “Almost all teen-agers, as they reach puberty, become walking zombies because they are getting far too little sleep,” observes\u00a0 Cornell University psychologist James Maas, PhD, one of the nation’s leading sleep experts.<\/p>\n Driving deaths.<\/strong>\u00a0Sleepiness can contribute to injuries and deaths related to lapses in attention and delayed response times at critical moments, especially while driving. Drowsiness or fatigue has been identified as a principle cause in at least 100,000 police-reported traffic crashes each year, killing more than 1,500 Americans and injuring another 71,000, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA, 1994).\u00a0Young drivers age 25 or under are involved in more than one-half of fall-asleep crashes<\/strong>.<\/strong>\u00a0[Source: National Sleep Foundation web site].<\/p>\n According to a report in Forbes, 49% of fatal crashes happen at night, with a fatality rate per mile of travel about\u00a0three times as high as daytime hours<\/strong>.\u00a0According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, fatal crashes involving\u00a0alcohol-impaired drivers occurred<\/strong>four times more at night<\/strong>\u00a0than during the day (37 percent versus 9 percent). If Maine allows teens to work till 11:00 as proposed legislation would allow, the number of teens killed or injured in drunk-driving accidents will increase.<\/p>\n Workplace injuries.<\/strong>\u00a0Each year, about 230,000 teens are injured at work. Longer and later hours will increase the likelihood of an injury because of the correlation between fatigue and injuries. [Source: NIOSH]<\/p>\n Workplace violence.<\/strong>\u00a0According to the 2009 National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 521 Americans were murdered in the work place. An estimated 2 million Americans are the victims of workplace violence each year. Teens tend to work in jobs that elevate their risk for workplace violence\u2014service and retail jobs that involve exchanging money and dealing with the public. Working till 11:00 would increase the chances that teens will be working alone or closing up, exposing them to additional risk.<\/p>\n\n
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