In California, a 16 year-old worker died when the forklift he was driving rolled over on him. In South Carolina, a 16 year-old teenager died as a result of falling two stories off scaffolding while working with his father on a framing crew. In Nebraska, a 17 year-old youth died after being pinned in a skid steer motor he was operating at a construction site. This tragic list of losses could have easily been avoided.

Despite federal child labor laws prohibiting the employment of youths in specific types of hazardous construction work, construction related accidents are the third leading cause of deaths among young workers. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), youth between the ages of 15 and 17 working in construction have more than seven times the risk of fatal injury as youth working in other industries, and more than twice the risk of workers ages 25 through 44 working in construction. In the construction field, the top causes of teenage deaths are falls from roofs, crushing or running over by construction equipment, electrical shock, and lifting operations.

Construction fatalities involving youth between the ages of 15 and 17 can be avoided merely by employer compliance with the child labor laws under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The FLSA sets an 18-year minimum age with respect to employment in any occupation declared by the Secretary of Labor to be particularly hazardous for minors. Construction companies can totally eliminate the risk of fatalities to minors merely by establishing and enforcing the FLSA's minimum age requirement for employment. If construction employers are not willing to impose an 18-year minimum age requirement, then it is imperative that they understand which occupations have been declared to be hazardous under the FLSA and police their worksites accordingly.

In general, under the FLSA, motor-vehicle drivers and outside helpers on any public road or highway, in or about any mine (including open pit mines and quarries) or in any excavation setting are too hazardous for the employment of minors. The FLSA does exempt the operation of automobiles or trucks not exceeding 6,000 pounds gross vehicle weight if such driving is restricted to daylight hours and the driving is only occasional and incidental to the minor's employment. The minor must hold a state driver's license valid for the type of driving involved and have completed a state-approved driver education course. The vehicle must be equipped with a seatbelt or a similar restraining device for the driver and each helper; the employer must also instruct each minor that the seatbelts or other restraining devices must be used. This exemption is not applicable to motor-vehicle drivers that tow other vehicles.

The FLSA prohibits the employment of minors in occupations involving certain types of power-driven machinery. For example, woodworking machinery falls into this category and includes all fixed or portable machines or tools driven by power used or designed for cutting, shaping, forming, surfacing, nailing, stapling, wire stitching, fastening, or otherwise assembling, pressing or printing wood or veneer. The operation of power driven metal forming, punching and shearing machines is too dangerous for minors. Work involving the operation of power-driven circular saws, band saws and guillotine shears is also deemed hazardous for minors.