letters and views Editor’s note: A recent discussion on the Cleaning & Maintenance Management Online Bulletin Board pertained to a new piece of legislation being contemplated in the state of Idaho. That discussion of allowing children under the age of 14 to work a maximum of 10 hours per week assisting in janitorial and cafeteria tasks follows below. The law would require approval from the parental guardians of any children who participate. Posted by: Aaron Baunee 7/6/2011 The lead story in today’s CM e-News Daily is, to say it lightly, preposterous. Read it here: www.cmmonline.com/man-agement-training/article/new-law-allows-for-kiddie-janitors. Much work has been done lately to raise the professionalism of the JanSan industry through training, education and innovation. Now, the state of Idaho has, in essence, lik-ened the custodial profession to child’s play. Would you be willing to “babysit” a co-worker for 10 hours a week? Do you, like me, find this to be an insulting oversight on the part of Idaho lawmakers? Ken Galo 7/6/2011 Oh, the good ol’ days when you could give them a hotdog, coke, Hershey bar and $5, and they would work all night long. Aaron, it’s cleaning; anyone can do it — they just don’t want to! And, quit thinking that lawmakers think: Teams of scientists all over the world haven’t been able to prove that yet. Ed Samson 7/6/2011 I like the idea of kids having a hand in keep-ing their environment clean. I had jobs before I was 14, and I think it teaches work ethics and financial respon-sibility. I remember being given the “honor” of cleaning the blackboard erasers and being a patrol boy in elementary school and run-ning the movie projector in high school. I doubt the kids will be cleaning rest-rooms or stripping floors. Emptying wastebaskets, cleaning glass doors, sweeping, cleaning black/white boards are all good for kids. Aaron Baunee 7/7/2011 Fair enough. I had the thought of children being unnecessarily exposed to chemicals and other hazards associated with tasks aside from “tidying up.” In that light, a little helper might not be so bad — if, of course, they can be kept on task. I, too, held jobs as an adolescent assist-ing as a farm hand and performing other menial tasks. I am curious, however, about federal child labor laws. I do not know the specifics but, even with parental permission, I believe that 14 is the minimum age for employment. Can anyone clarify this or am I mistaken? Richard Wacker 7/7/2011 Aaron, I think you are right about being 14 years old to work. I also think the school needs to sign off on it. I hope Ken is using tongue and cheek about cleaning being simple and something anyone can do. Cleaning is a profession that needs train-ing. What is clean to one person is not clean to another person — it is a misnomer that anyone can clean. That is why we have the problems in our profession, because chief executive officers (CEOs) of companies think anyone can clean. Can anyone do surgery; can anyone officiate sports without knowing the rules? We need to educate society that clean-ing is a profession and cannot be done by anyone who goes to Wal-Mart or a grocery store to buy cleaning chemicals and now is a cleaning expert. Ken Galo 7/7/2011 Of course I was being a smart aleck. Age 14 requires a work permit here; anything under 14 can only be in a family-owned business, such as a farm where no permit is required. Responses: Dale Muckerman 7/6/2011 As someone who did actually have a job at the age of 10 back in the 1960s, I don’t see anything wrong or unprofessional about a 10-year-old working. I would object for a number of reasons if a child worker could be hired for less than the going wage rate. I would also object if child workers weren’t held to the same work performance standards of other workers. 6 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • August 2011
CMM – Archives Aug 2011: 6
