PICKERINGTON, Ohio — Lawmakers are looking to pass a bill allowing minors to work later in the night during the school year.
What You Need To Know
- Senate Bill 251 would allow teens to work until 9 p.m. year round
- The current work curfew is 7 p.m. in Ohio
- The expansion reportedly has the support of small-business owners
- Thirteen states currently allow teens younger than 16 to work until 9 p.m.
Small business owners say it would benefit not just them, but the workers and the economy as a whole.
Mike Todd and his wife, Luann, have owned the Dairy Queen in Pickerington since it first opened in 2001. They bought the franchise a couple years earlier and have been a part of the community ever since.
“Depending on the weather, we are quite busy,” said Todd. “The drive-through will be backed up to the street. The lobby will be full of people. So we’re proud to be a part of a business community that’s able to serve the people of Pickerington.”
He said the service can be tough, though, because some of his employees are teenagers. Todd said the problem is not that teenagers do not want to work, but they cannot work past 7 p.m. during the school year, according to state and federal law.
“A lot of them have parents who work,” he said. “So if the parents gets home after 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. with that 7 p.m. curfew that’s currently in place, it really isn’t worth it for the parents to drive here, drop them off and then come back and pick them up an hour later.”
Jayden Simcox, 15, is one of those kids that would like to work later. Simcox has been working at DQ for seven months.
“I normally do take orders, I’ll make ice cream, clean the lobby,” said Simcox.
Simcox works three to four times per week, typically from 4-7 p.m. At the same time, he’s a freshman at Pickerington High School Central. Despite his limited free time, he wants to work more.
“We should be able to work past 7 p.m,” Simcox said. “I play football and train the off season, it doesn’t take a lot time to work. So if 14- or 15-year-olds are willing to work, let the restaurant owners open up the doors since nobody else would do it.”
The Todds recently reached out to State Senator Tim Schaffer, R-Lancaster, for help. Schaffer and Sen. Tina Maharath, D-Canal Winchester, have since introduced a bill to allow 14- and 15-year-olds to work until 9 p.m. year round with their parent’s approval.
Todd said the law could help double his workforce, which would help him get through the pandemic and beyond.
“If we can get these young people to work a little extra because they want to, you know, that’s a good thing, but especially in the locally-owned family businesses, anywhere,” said Todd. “If they’re able to add this to their toolbox to their arsenal, it’s nothing but a benefit.”
Thirteen states currently allow kids younger than 16 to work until at least 9 p.m. year round, according to the United States Department of Labor.
