Child Labor Law Updates: What’s Changing in Indiana, Washington, and West Virginia

Child labor laws are shifting across the country this year. Indiana, Washington, and West Virginia have each enacted new legislation, effective this summer, that changes employer obligations around minor employment. Here’s a breakdown of what’s changing and when. 

Indiana HB 1302

Effective July 1, 2026, HB 1302 repeals the requirement for employers who employ at least five minors between the ages of 14-17 to register with the Indiana Department of Labor. Employers no longer need to provide their name, address, and number of minors hired or employed, or update qualifying locations and minor information monthly for the Department’s database.  

Washington HB 1121

Effective July 1, 2026, HB 1121 expands working hours for minors who are 16 and 17 years old so they may work the same number of hours and days during the school year as they would during school vacations and holidays if the minor is enrolled in a career and technical education program.

Under Washington’s child labor law, a career and technical education program is a work-based learning program approved by the office of the superintendent of public instruction or the minor’s school district such as a core plus program. The goal of this amendment is to align the working hours of minors participating in either a bona fide college program or a career and technical education program during the school year.  

West Virginia HB 4005

Effective June 8, 2026, HB 4005 reduces child labor restrictions for minors by removing the state’s own list of hazardous occupations previously barred to children under 16 and aligning with federal law. The state further prohibits any dangerous or injurious occupation for minors under 18, beyond those already addressed in its child labor law, that is expressly prohibited by West Virginia law or that the Department of Labor’s Commissioner determines by rulemaking.