A CASE STUDY ANALYSIS OF THE POLICY PRODUCTION PROCESS WITH REGARD TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILD AGRICULTURAL LABOR POLICY IN TWO US STATES

Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Gorup, Michael

Area of Concentration

Public Policy

Abstract

In 2023, following investigations by the Department of Labor about violations of child labor law by Packers Sanitation Services Inc. found numerous violations involving children working in hazardous conditions at meat packing plants in multiple states. Further media coverage about the rise in child labor violations across the country accompanied by several states moving to deregulate many aspects of child labor law surprised, and at times sparked fierce debate, among the American public. In the wake of this renewed interest, this thesis seeks to understand the development of child labor policy within the agricultural sphere using a case study analysis of two states - Texas & California. By examining the historical developments of public policy with regard to child agricultural labor this thesis will explore the motivations for and interaction between federal and state-level policy development within the context of a relatively underexplored aspect of labor policy in the United States.

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