{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://tokuda.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-jill-tokuda-joins-booker-welch-casar-introducing-bicameral-bill-hold", "Rep. Jill Tokuda Joins Booker, Welch, Casar in  Introducing Bicameral Bill to Hold Corporations Accountable for Child Labor Violations", "2023-04-25", "2023", "2023-04", "Democrat", "House", "HI", "Jill N. Tokuda", "T000487", "tokuda.house.gov", "tokuda", "https://tokuda.house.gov/media/press-releases?PageNum_rs=11&", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, Representative Jill Tokuda (HI-02) joined U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas), alongside more than 50 advocacy organizations, in introducing the bicameral Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act, legislation aimed at holding corporations accountable for the exploitation of children and workers in the food industry.\n\nThe bill prohibits the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from engaging in contracts with companies that have committed egregious labor law violations and/or contracted with vendors that have incurred, and failed to rectify, serious worker or labor infractions.\n\n\u201cIt is absolutely unacceptable that in this day and age, Congress must take action to hold corporations accountable for making profits on the backs of our children. These cruel and dangerous actions can not be allowed to stand in the United States of America,\u201d said Rep. Jill Tokuda. \u201cUS Department of Labor studies show that child employment has increased 69% across the county since 2018 which is unacceptable. Companies that are illegally employing children must be held accountable for these violations. This bill will do just that by establishing strong enforcement measures to prevent abusive child labor.\u201d\n\n\u201cToday, we\u2019re seeing so many children \u2013 especially migrant children \u2013 forced to work unsafe, dangerous, and overnight jobs by some of the biggest corporations in our country,\u201d said Congressman Greg Casar (D-Texas). \u201cIt\u2019s unacceptable. That\u2019s why we\u2019re introducing the Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act to end child labor by ensuring that if companies want USDA dollars, then they shouldn\u2019t break federal labor law. We can care for all children, and make sure they can get the education, food, housing, and development opportunities they need.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe must hold companies accountable if they violate labor laws and exploit workers, including vulnerable children,\u201d said Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.). \u201cCompanies that benefit from federal contracts have a responsibility to ensure that their workers, whether direct employees or contract workers, are treated fairly and safely. My bill will ensure companies are barred from participating in federal contracts if they engage in labor law violations that include the use of child labor. This sends a clear message to corporations that they cannot put their profits above the health, safety, and well-being of workers, especially children.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo child should be made to do hazardous work \u2013 but as recent reporting has shown, that remains all too common in the United States,\u201d said Senator Peter Welch (D-VT). \u201cWe must use every tool at our disposal to end child labor, and that\u2019s why I am proud to join Sen. Booker to introduce the Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act and leverage the power of federal contracts to hold corporations accountable for these shameful practices.\u201d\n\nSpecifically, the Child Labor Exploitation Accountability Act would:\n\nRequire companies competing for contracts with Department of Agriculture to disclose labor and worker safety infractions by the company itself as well as by any of their contractors in the preceding three years\n\nEmpower the Secretary of Labor to determine corrective measures for a company and/or their contractors to remain eligible for the USDA contracts\n\nRequire the Secretary of Labor to prepare a list of companies that are ineligible for USDA contracts for that year based on serious, repeated, or pervasive violations of labor laws, and\n\nEstablish strong enforcement measures to ensure USDA and DOL compliance.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T23:44:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://tokuda.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-jill-tokuda-joins-booker-welch-casar-introducing-bicameral-bill-hold"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9042923338711262, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}