HJR3 hearing urges Maryland to ratify the child labor constitutional amendment proposed in 1919

Delegate Ruth presented House Joint Resolution 3 to the Rules Committee, urging Maryland to ratify the child labor amendment to the U.S. Constitution that Congress proposed in 1919.

"On June 19, 1924, over a hundred years ago, Congress proposed an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would allow the federal government to regulate child labor," the sponsor said, recounting the historical background. The sponsor told the committee that although more than two dozen states initially ratified the amendment, Maryland voted against ratification at the time and the amendment fell short of the three-quarters threshold.

The sponsor cited recent reports of child labor violations — including children as young as 13 working in hazardous conditions in meat-packing plants — and noted that some states have recently rolled back protections. She said the amendment remains pending (because no ratification time limit was attached) and that adding Maryland’s ratification would help toward the ten additional state ratifications still required to reach three-quarters.

The committee questioned whether the cited meat-packing incidents were legal; the sponsor said the conduct was illegal and that the U.S. Department of Labor had filed an action. The hearing concluded with no committee vote; the sponsor asked for a favorable report to correct Maryland’s prior vote and support additional federal authority to regulate hazardous work by minors.

The sponsor provided supporting testimony from unions and worker-advocacy organizations in the committee packet.