LOWER LAKE, Calif. — On New Year’s Day, over 100 visitors decided to get a healthy start to 2024 by participating in the tenth annual First Day Hike held at Anderson Marsh State Historic Park.
Hikers of all ages enjoyed a beautiful, sunny day in the park, and ranged from “old timers” who regularly hike in the park to first time visitors.
“The First Day Hike has become a Lake County tradition,” said Henry Bornstein, one of the State Parks volunteer hike leaders. “With the exception of 2021, which was canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, the First Day Hikes at the park have attracted over 100 attendees for each of the past ten years. To allow folks to “sleep in” on New Year’s Day, we always begin the hikes at noon.”
The hike this year covered a three-mile loop on the park’s trail system and was led by an all-volunteer team of State Park docents.
The hikers were divided into two groups to accommodate the large number of visitors, with each group starting in a different direction and passing each other in the middle of the hike.
Each group stopped periodically to allow the hike leaders to discuss the flora and fauna that was encountered on the trail.
The recent rains created a good opportunity to identify the animal tracks on the trails and the sunny day was made brighter by Western bluebirds finding perches in the trees and shrubs.
“State Park staff and volunteers at Anderson Marsh State Historic Park are looking forward to the start of another year of guided nature walks at the park, culminating with next year’s First Day Hike,” Bornstein said.
LAKEPORT, Calif. — A Clearlake couple has welcomed a healthy new baby girl, who has the distinction of being Lake County’s first baby of 2024.
Jaylin Mora-Rivera was born at 10:26 p.m. Monday, Jan. 1, to proud parents Janette Rivera and Gustavo Mora Cueras at Sutter Lakeside Hospital.
The hospital reported that Jaylin weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces.
Jaylin’s arrival was highly anticipated by big brother Dylan, 5, who has already met his little sister.
Her parents live in Clearlake but chose to give birth at Sutter Lakeside Hospital for a second time due to the care they received with their first child.
Rivera said she is feeling well. About her care, she says, “All the nurses are kind and attentive.”
The family was impressed with the education they received from the delivery team and felt very prepared for the birth of Jaylin.
Their delivery team included Dr. Peter Weiss, Amanda Smith, RN, and Crystal Zepeda, RN.
As the first baby of 2024 both at Sutter Lakeside and for all of Lake County, Jaylin and her family will receive a “New Year's Baby Basket.”
This tradition at Sutter Lakeside hospital is arranged by the staff of the Family Birth Center. This year’s basket donations were coordinated by Registered Nurses Clare Tanti and Meagan Gard.
Eleven individuals and organizations donated to this year’s basket, including Pak n Play, diaper bag, boppy pillow, grocery gift cards, a mama pamper package, newborn baby photo session, a staycation at a local Airbnb and many more items.
The 2024 donors included A+H General Store, Brittany Albaum, Darby Designs, Kaitlinn Bour, Lorena Watson, NP, Megan Andrus, Mother-Wise, Oak Clothing Boutique, Serenity Massage, Stefani Re and Sutter Lakeside Hospital.
The couple were much appreciative of the items and the spirit in which they were given.
Rivera is looking forward to enjoying a celebratory meal, bonding with Jaylin and then going home on Wednesday to be with family. For now, her care is continued postpartum by Dr. Brian Truong, Laurie De Leon, RN, and Courtney Taffi, RN.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake City Council will hold its first meeting of the year this week with a new mayor, and will consider appointments to boards and committees.
The council will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 4, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
Comments and questions can be submitted in writing for City Council consideration by sending them to City Clerk Melissa Swanson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
To give the council adequate time to review your questions and comments, please submit your written comments before 4 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 4.
At its Dec. 7 regular meeting, the council unanimously appointed Councilmember David Claffey as the mayor for 2024. Councilmember Joyce Overton was appointed vice mayor.
Claffey takes over the mayor’s seat for the first time on Thursday, and will make a presentation.
The council also will offer a proclamation declaring January 2024 as Human Trafficking Awareness Month and present certificates of appreciation for the annual Breakfast with Santa volunteers.
In council business, the council will consider appointing members as representatives to represent and vote on behalf of the city at the CalCities, Redwood Empire division business meetings, which take place on a quarterly basis, and represent the city and vote at the division legislative committee meetings.
In addition, the council will consider Mayor Claffey’s proposed appointments to various committees, boards and commissions for 2024.
The council also will hold a closed session with legal counsel to discuss a liability claim filed by June Linet Cejavasquez and two cases of anticipated litigation.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Prosecutors will find it easier to seek stricter penalties against retail theft suspects if a bill, AB 1772, introduced Wednesday by Assemblymember James C. Ramos (D-San Bernardino) is approved by the Legislature, governor and then wins voter approval.
If approved, store thefts would no longer be processed as a misdemeanor with no jail time if a suspect has been convicted of two or more specified theft-related offenses, and punishment could range from imprisonment in the county jail ranging from six months to as long as three years.
“Shoplifting, smash-and-grab thefts, and other acts of retail theft trends are causing retailers to close their businesses and endangering customers and employees,” said Ramos. “Since the pandemic, these crimes have increased. That is not the direction California needs to go.”
He added, “The Public Policy Institute reported that the 2022 rates for commercial burglary rates had increased by almost 16 percent compared to 2019. The PPIC also reported that shoplifting in 2022 had increased by nearly 29% from the pandemic years.”
In 2014, voters approved Prop 47 by a 60% to 40% vote and categorized some nonviolent offenses as misdemeanors rather than felonies.
One provision increased the threshold amount for theft misdemeanors from $450 to $950 and did not allow prior such convictions to count toward the new $950 threshold.
If Ramos’ measure becomes law, it would become effective only upon voters’ consent at the next statewide election.
AB 1772 does not state a new threshold for triggering the increased penalties for retail theft, only the existence of prior convictions on the suspect’s criminal record.
In February 2023, the legislator requested the state auditor to review the effectiveness of Proposition 47 to determine whether it had escalated crime rates in San Bernardino and Riverside counties and if so, what categories had been affected.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — The Department of Water Resources on Tuesday conducted the first snow survey of the season at Phillips Station, finding a sparse snowpack.
The manual survey recorded 7.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 3 inches, which is 30% of average for this location.
The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast. Statewide the snowpack is 25% of average for this date.
After one of the largest snowpacks on record last season, the start of this water year has been dry despite some recent storms in the last weeks of December that provided a small boost in the snowpack.
While state reservoirs are still above average for this time of year and strong El Niño conditions are present in the Pacific Ocean, the outlook for the rest of the winter remains highly uncertain.
“California saw firsthand last year how historic drought conditions can quickly give way to unprecedented, dangerous flooding,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “Although El Niño does not guarantee an above average water year, California is preparing for the possibility of more extreme storms while increasing our climate resilience for the next drought.”
DWR’s electronic readings from 130 stations placed throughout the state indicate that the statewide snowpack’s snow water equivalent is 2.5 inches, or 25% of average for this date, compared to 185% on this date last year.
“While we are glad the recent storms brought a small boost to the snowpack, the dry fall and below average conditions today shows how fast water conditions can change,” said DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit Manager Sean de Guzman. “It’s still far too early to say what kind of water year we will have, and it will be important for Californians to pay attention to their forecasts and conserve water, rain or shine.”
Last year, California experienced climate whiplash when the driest three year-period on record ended with extreme storm events in January and March that caused damage and flooding across the state.
These extreme weather events highlight the need for all Californians to prepare for flood risk. DWR is working with tribal, federal, state, and local partners to provide flood resources and training to communities across the state.
The State-Federal Flood Operations Center, or FOC, has pre-positioned flood fight materials at more locations across the state and is starting this winter with more supplies on hand, including 2.2 million more sandbags.
This fall, DWR coordinated pre-flood season meetings with emergency response agencies across the state and organized 38 flood-fight trainings for city, county, state and tribal agencies to prepare for possible local emergencies.
To prepare for flooding, all Californians should follow three basic steps:
• Be aware of your risk: Know whether your home is downslope of a burn area or in a floodplain; pay attention to weather forecasts; listen to local authorities. • Be prepared: Always have an emergency evacuation kit ready; be prepared to evacuate early; have a plan for where you will go in an emergency. • Take action: Subscribe to your local emergency providers to get updated information. If local authorities issue an evacuation order, do not delay, follow local guidelines for evacuation and never attempt to drive through a flooded roadway.
One year ago, the January survey at the Phillips location showed a water content of 177% of average and was followed by a series of damaging atmospheric river storms in January and March that caused flood impacts across the state and produced one of the largest snowpacks on record.
In addition to deploying resources including over 1.9 million sandbags across the state last year, the FOC coordinated a joint state, federal and local response to snowmelt-driven flooding concerns and prepared for the historic snowmelt by providing hydraulic and hydrologic modeling and snowmelt forecasts that allowed agencies to deploy resources, reinforce levees and protect communities.
On average, the Sierra snowpack supplies about 30% of California’s water needs. Its natural ability to store water is why the Sierra snowpack is often referred to as California's “frozen reservoir.”
Data from these snow surveys and forecasts produced by DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit are important factors in determining how DWR manages the state’s water resources.
Due to last year’s above average conditions and historic snowpack, a total of 3.5 million acre-feet of water was captured in State Water Project, or SWP, reservoirs.
Lake Oroville, the SWP’s largest reservoir, is currently at 130% of average to date and state water managers are prepared to capture and store as much water as possible.
A new law has created another specialized alert for endangered missing individuals in California.
On Jan. 1, SB 673, which created the new “Ebony Alert,” went into effect.
The legislation was authored by Sen. Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) and sponsored by the NAACP California Hawaii State Conference.
It allows law enforcement agencies to request that the California Highway Patrol activate an alert for Black youth — including young women and girls between 12 to 25 years of age — who are reported missing under unexplained or suspicious circumstances, at risk, developmentally disabled, cognitively impaired, or who have been abducted, the CHP reported.
Bradford’s office said that, with the bill becoming law, California will become the first state in the nation to enact a law to combat the crisis of missing Black youth and young Black women.
While Black Americans make up 13% of the nation’s population, Bradford said Black children make up about 38% of all missing child cases and they receive less media attention.
In addition, Bradford’s office said missing young Black women are often subjected to human trafficking. A Congressional Black Caucus Foundation report on human trafficking also found 40% of sex trafficking victims nationally were identified as Black women.
In a support statement for the legislation, Oakland City Councilmember Treva Reid pointed to Oakland Police Department data that shows that Black people make up 22% of Oakland’s population yet account for about 60% of reported missing persons cases.
The Black and Missing Foundation reported that California ranks in the top states where people of color are disappearing at an alarming rate.
“It is important to continue to raise awareness about this issue and advocate for policies that prioritize finding missing people of color. We must ensure that every missing person is given the same amount of attention and resources, regardless of their race or socioeconomic status,” the foundation said.
Berry Accius, founder and chief executive officer of Voice of the Youth, said of the new legislation, “The Ebony Alert will be a game changer for our communities and a necessary tool to bring missing Black girls and women home.”
Bradford’s office said that, unlike the Amber Alert — which can only be used for children younger than age 18 — the Ebony Alert is broader and can be used to help locate young people between the ages of 12 and 25, including those that are considered runaways and those that are subject to human trafficking.
However, that broader aspect of the Ebony Alert was noted as a concern by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who signed the bill into law on Oct. 8.
In his signing message, the governor thanked the Legislature for addressing the “well documented disproportionality in the number of children of color who go missing every year.”
However, while he was signing the bill, Newsom added, “my Administration has broader concerns that were clearly expressed to the author throughout the process. The criteria in this bill are expansive and do not align with the criteria in existing alerts such as the Amber Alert, Endangered Missing Advisory, Feather Alert and Silver Alert. Our emergency alert system is dependent on people not being fatigued by it and thus ignoring it. Our challenge is to achieve balance between the imperative to notify the public quickly in cases of missing persons or dangerous situations, but to not desensitize that same public by sending too many notifications.”
In response, Newsom said he’s directed the CHP and the Office of Emergency Services to propose reforms through the budget “to ensure consistency for all of California's alert programs.”
The Ebony Alert joins a suite of other alerts managed by the CHP.
In 2022, two new alerts were approved: The Feather Alert, meant to help locate missing Indigenous people, and the California Statewide Yellow Alert Program, introduced through Assembly Bill 1732, which the CHP said is activated when a person has been killed due to a hit-and-run incident and the law enforcement agency has specified information concerning the suspect or the suspect’s vehicle.
Other alerts include:
• The AMBER Alert — which stands for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response — that’s been used since 2002 when children age 17 or younger have been abducted;
• The Blue Alert, approved in 2011, that notifies the public when a suspect in the assault or killing of a police officer remains at large and the search is active.
• The Silver Alert, used since 2013 when elderly, developmentally or cognitively-impaired persons are missing and determined to be at-risk.
• The general endangered missing advisory is used when an individual is missing under unexplained or suspicious, and is believed to be in danger due to issues with age, physical and mental health issues, weather, being with a potentially dangerous person or other circumstances.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
The California Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board on Wednesday announced the release of its annual report on police stops across California.
The report analyzes millions of vehicle and pedestrian stops conducted in 2022 by 560 law enforcement agencies in California — a major expansion from the 58 participating agencies in the previous report — under the Racial and Identity Profiling Act, or RIPA.
In addition to providing an in-depth look into policing in 2022, the Board’s report contains a wide array of best practice recommendations related to policing, with a particular focus on the impact of pretext stops, law enforcement interactions with youth, civilian complaint processes, police union effects on law enforcement accountability, and trainings on racial and identity profiling.
Overall, the findings from the latest RIPA report are consistent with the disparities observed in prior years’ data with respect to perceived race, age, and disability status.
“California is leading the nation in identifying and addressing racial and identity profiling,” said Andrea Guerrero, co-chair of the RIPA Board and Executive Director of Alliance San Diego. “This report marks a major milestone as the first to include stop data from law enforcement agencies across the entire state. The scale of data that California is collecting allows us to say definitively that profiling exists — it is a pervasive pattern across the state. We must now turn to the hard work of ending profiling by bringing all the stakeholders to the table to ascertain and change the policies and the practices that enable it. I'm proud to work alongside community and law enforcement leaders on the RIPA Board who are having the tough conversations needed to bring about change. Public safety depends on all of us, and we invite all stakeholders to join the RIPA Board on our path to progress."
“The annual collection of the RIPA stop data is making California communities safer by directing thoughtful and reflective reform,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Over the last several years, we’ve collected and analyzed information on more than 16 million police encounters in our state. In turn, with the support of our staff at the California Department of Justice, the RIPA Board has continued to issue key recommendations for our law enforcement agencies to promote transparency and take critical steps to enhance, and in some cases, repair the public trust.”
The information collected under RIPA includes data on peace officers’ perceptions of the demographics of stopped individuals, such as race or ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, and disability.
The board collects this information to determine whether disparities can be found across demographic groups. The board uses several well-established methodologies to analyze stop data to determine if bias may exist.
Some of the key findings from the board’s report include:
• Number of stops: A total of 4,575,725 stops were conducted by 560 agencies from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022. • Population comparison: Overall, the disparity between the proportion of stops and the proportion of residential population was greatest for Black individuals, who were stopped 131.5 % more frequently than expected. • Search rates: Black individuals were searched at a rate 1.66 times the rate of White individuals. Although stopped individuals perceived to be Black or Hispanic/Latino were searched at a higher rate relative to individuals perceived to be White, officers discovered contraband or evidence during stops in which they conducted searches at a lower rate for individuals perceived to be Black or Hispanic/Latino. • Actions taken: Officers reported not taking any reportable action during 75% of stops and taking actions during 25% of stops. Of all the racial or ethnic groups, stopped individuals whom officers perceived to be Native American had the highest rate of being searched (22.4%) and handcuffed (17.8%). Stopped individuals whom officers perceived to be Black had the highest rate of being detained curbside or in a patrol car (20.2%) and ordered to exit a vehicle (7.1%). Individuals perceived to be transgender men/boys also had actions taken towards them during half of their stops (50.0%).
In addition to the data analysis, the board issues best practice recommendations that law enforcement agencies, the Legislature, local policymakers, the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), community members, and advocates should consider when implementing evidence-based and data-driven policy reforms geared to eliminate racial and identity profiling and improve law enforcement and community relations.
Examples of the board’s recommendations from the report include:
• Ending all pretextual stops and searches by taking actions such as ending consent or supervision searches as well as limiting law enforcement roll in the enforcement of traffic laws; • Prohibiting the collection of field interview cards and entries into CalGang or any agency database in absence of an arrest; • Adopting internal policies that prohibit law enforcement agencies and district attorneys from pursuing criminal charges for standalone resisting arrest without other citable offenses; • Prioritizing a care-first model, reducing unnecessary criminal justice intervention or law enforcement response in favor of a community-based response for youth with disabilities and youth experiencing mental health crises; • Considerations related to the efficacy of school police and law enforcement contacts, such as identifying specific student conduct or statutory violations that require disciplinary action that should be handled by school staff, and for which law enforcement officers should not be involved; • Calling for further research on how Police Officer Bills of Rights and provisions or agreements with unions affect police accountability; • Amending Penal Code section 832.5 to include a standardized definition of “civilian complaint”; • Reviewing all available video footage and incorporating root cause analysis into complaint investigations; and • Seeking community and Board input early in POST’s course development process and integrating feedback into the course curriculum before finalizing the course.
For more on RIPA and other criminal justice data, members of the public are encouraged to visit OpenJustice, a data-driven initiative that works to increase access to criminal justice data and support the development of public policy.
A copy of the report announced today is available here. More information about the Board is available here.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — After a rainy start to the week, Lake County and the greater North Coast region are forecast to receive more precipitation through the rest of the week, with there being the potential for snow in higher elevations.
The National Weather Service’s weather station network showed rainfall totals in inches for the 24-hour period ending at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday as follows:
• Hidden Valley Lake: 0.72. • Indian Valley Reservoir: 0.53. • Kelseyville: 0.85. • Lake Pillsbury: 0.87. • Lower Lake: 0.59. • Lyons Valley: 0.54. • Whispering Pines: 1.16.
The National Weather Service’s forecast synopsis for the North Coast calls for showers to taper off during the day on Wednesday, to be followed by progressively colder storms with lower snowfall from Friday through Sunday, and more precipitation expected beginning early next week.
In Lake County, rain is forecast for much of the rest of the week and into next week.
Snow is possible on Friday and Saturday in the mountains north of Upper Lake and in Cobb beginning on Saturday night.
The forecast also calls for breezy conditions from Wednesday through Saturday.
Daytime temperatures through the week will hover in the high 40s to low 50s, and remain in the 30s at night, dropping to near or below freezing from Friday through Monday nights.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The Lakeport Fire Protection District Board is planning a hearing next week to consider increasing its mitigation, or development impact, fees.
The board will hold a public hearing at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 9, at the headquarters station, 445 N. Main St.
The documents are available on the district’s website and at the headquarters station during business hours of 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The Jan. 9 hearing will allow community members to provide input on the mitigation fee study, completed by Ridgeline Municipal Strategies. The firm’s overview presentation is published below.
The mitigation fee, also known as the development impact fee, is a one-time fee imposed on new development as a condition of approval. It’s meant to pay for public facilities needed to serve new development.
The report explains that mitigation fees can be used to expand the district’s facilities to serve new development, but they cannot be used for maintenance, deficiencies or operations.
The mitigation fee ordinance was adopted in September 1992 in Lake County and in April 2005 in the city of Lakeport.
The report said there have been no significant updates to the fee program in 31 years, other than the city of Lakeport increasing the fee to match the Lake County amount in 2007. The program set the fee ceiling of $1 per square foot but did not include an inflation adjustment provision.
Since the program was implemented, the district has added emergency medical services, and construction costs went from $64 to $70 per square foot to more than $600 per square foot. At the same time, class A engine/pumper trucks have grown in cost from $200,000 to $350,000 to $700,000, and water tenders have risen from between $110,000 to $125,000 to between $400,000 and $550,000, the report said.
The report said the fire mitigation fee methodology is based on future development’s share of existing and future public facility costs.
There are currently 10.8 million square feet of development within the district. Within the next 18 years, it’s projected that there will be 1.1 million square feet of new development.
They’re proposing a total fee of $2 per square foot for residential development and $2.45 per square foot for commercial development.
The new fee is expected to raise revenue of $2.3 million over 18 years.
During that time frame, there will be planned facilities costs of $24.7 million, with $480,000 in available mitigation fee funds and $22 million needed from other sources, according to the report.
In related news, in September, the board voted to raise the Measure M parcel tax rate.
Measure M, passed by voters in 2019, had a beginning rate per benefit unit of $6.14. The ordinance authorizing the measure allowed the board to approve an annual rate increase of up to 3%, based on the San Francisco Consumer Price Index.
The board voted to raise the tax to $6.65, splitting the difference between the minimum increase that would have made the new rate $6.50 and the maximum allowable increase that would have changed the rate to $6.81.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Think about your first job. Maybe it was delivering pizza, bagging groceries, busing tables or doing landscaping work. Did you get enough training to avoid potential injuries? Chances are, you didn’t – and your boss or supervisor just told you to get to work.
Employing young people helps them in many ways. They can learn a trade, develop job skills, become more responsible and earn money. But there’s danger, too: Americans between 15 and 24 years old are up to 2.3 times more likely to get injured on the job than workers who are 25 and over.
Work is more dangerous for young people because they’ve simply had less time to become aware of many common workplace hazards than their older co-workers.
And yet this problem isn’t typically addressed during onboarding: Even those who have been trained to do a specific job may not be taught ways to avoid common injuries. These include tendinitis from scooping ice cream for hours on end, burns from operating a deep fryer, lacerations from sharp objects, and slips, trips and falls.
For example, workers in their teens and early 20s may be smaller and weaker than older workers. Furthermore, some safety equipment, such as gloves and masks, may not properly fit.
Young people are inclined to seek approval and respect, which influences their decision-making.
They also engage in risky behaviors both on and off the job that may affect their performance at work.
Finally, many young workers are reluctant to speak up if they have concerns, or to ask questions if they don’t know what to do, because they don’t want to lose respect from their boss or supervisor. To avoid appearing unqualified, they may not want to admit that they need help.
Duvan Tomas Perez, for example, died on the job while cleaning machinery in the Mar-Jac Poultry plant in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, in August 2023. Perez was 16. So was Michael Schuls, who died in June 2023 while attempting to unjam a wood-stacking machine at Florence Hardwoods, a Wisconsin lumber company. Will Hampton, another 16-year-old, also died that month in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, while working at a landfill.
Teachers at a Nebraska middle school figured out that students who had trouble staying awake at school were working night shifts at a slaughterhouse, doing dangerous cleaning work that caused chemical burns.
Enacted in 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act established federal standards to ensure workplace safety for workers under 18 and bars employers from interfering with their educational opportunities. This law sets 14 as a minimum age for formal employment, restricts when and how many hours children may work, and outlines the type of work children may safely perform.
When state labor laws are less restrictive than the federal law, however, the federal standards apply.
The federal government is also ramping up enforcement efforts. The Labor Department found 4,474 children employed in violation of federal child labor laws between Oct. 1, 2022, and July 20, 2023. Employers, including McDonald’s and Sonic fast-food franchisees, owed more than $6.6 million in penalties as a result.
3 steps employers can take
In addition to following the law, I believe that employers and supervisors need to address the unique risks to young workers by taking these necessary steps:
• Provide training on how to do tasks safely and supervise young workers until key tasks have been mastered. Training should not only occur right before a new employee gets ready for their first shift, but whenever new tasks are assigned, when there is a new hazard in the workplace, and after an injury or near miss occurs in the workplace.
• Model safe behaviors. Remember that young workers often learn by watching their bosses and co-workers, whose actions can reinforce safety expectations and build a culture of safety.
• Take into account a worker’s abilities when assigning tasks, and check in on them regularly, especially when switching tasks. Ask open-ended questions, such as, “What are the steps you are going to take when you do this task?” as opposed to questions that can be answered with a yes or no, like, “Do you know how to do this task?” Be sure to let workers know how to report concerns and who they can talk to if they have questions about workplace procedures and policies.
These strategies are easy to implement and cost little to follow.
And they surely make it safer for workers in their teens and early 20s to gain the valuable work experience they want and need, while helping their employers to maintain safe, productive workplaces that nurture the workers our economy will increasingly depend upon in the years ahead.
As a neurologist specializing in sleep disorders, I have studied the profound importance of sleep in optimizing the body and mind. I believe insufficient sleep among adolescents is a public health crisis. This is why I reached out to my local state representative in Pennsylvania, Rep. Jill Cooper, a member of the House Education Committee, in October 2023 and pushed for legislative change. The resulting proposed bill would mandate that middle and high schools start no earlier than 8:15 a.m. by the 2026-27 school year.
While parents, educators and school administrators cannot alter biology, they can change school start times to allow students to obtain sufficient sleep for academic success and physical and mental well-being. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends pushing back school start times to 8:30 a.m. or later.
Around the world, school start times vary considerably, from 7 a.m. in Brazil to 9 a.m. in Finland. While I’m not aware of any global dataset or research on the relationship between school start times and academic performance, Finland was ranked No. 2 on the list of best educational systems in the Global Citizens for Human Rights report in 2020. Canada, where the average school day begins at 8:30 a.m., was ranked No. 4.
Sleep and the teenage brain
Parents may notice that their kids, who were once early birds, start to sleep later and later as they hit their teen years. This is not just due to typical teen behavior like playing video games late at night, but rather it’s a biological response.
During adolescence, changes in hormone levels, along with physical and brain maturation, lead to natural shifts in the circadian rhythm. The body tends to delay the release of melatonin, the hormone responsible for bringing on drowsiness at night.
Consequently, teens often find it challenging to fall asleep early, leading to a later bedtime. This delayed circadian rhythm also results in a preference for waking up later in the morning. These changes clash with societal and cultural expectations such as early school start times, often contributing to sleep deprivation among teenagers.
More than 80% of public middle and high schools across the United States start before 8:30 a.m., with 42% starting before 8 and 10% before 7:30. Consequently, bus pickup for some children can be as early as 5 a.m. in some districts. What follow are four negative outcomes associated with early school start times.
Hindered academic success
Numerous studies have linked early school start times to poorer performance on academic tests.
One study looked at school start times, graduation rates and attendance rates for 30,000 students in 29 high schools across seven states. It found a significant improvement in attendance rates, from 90% to 93%, and graduation rates, from 80% to 90%, four years after delaying school start times to 8:30.
A recent advisory from the U.S. surgeon general raised the alarm on the harmful impacts of social media on youth mental health. Researchers have unearthed mounds of evidence on the negative effects, including poor body image. In these discussions, however, a simple yet powerful solution for improving mental well-being is often overlooked – the profound impact of sleep.
During REM sleep – or the dream state – our memories consolidate and we process emotions. Insufficient sleep increases the risk of depression, anxiety and suicide among adolescents. One study showed that for every extra hour of sleep among adolescents, their risk of suicide decreased by 11%.
Impaired physical health and social behavior
Sleep is fundamental for physical well-being. For both children and adults, it plays a key role in essential bodily functions. During slow-wave sleep – or deep sleep – our bodies restore themselves: Our immune system strengthens to keep us healthy. And our waste-clearing glymphatic system eradicates neurotoxic proteins, which are linked to diseases like Alzheimer’s.
Sleep-deprived students are also more likely to demonstrate aggression, struggle with social communication and engage in risk-taking behaviors. One study found that the amount of sleep that high school students get is directly related to their engagement in unsafe behaviors, such as substance abuse, risky driving, aggressive behavior and tendency toward self-harm.
The study showed that a universal shift to 8:30 a.m. school start times would result in an $8.6 billion gain in the U.S. economy over two years. Investing in delayed school start times, therefore, isn’t a drain on resources. Instead, it contributes to a healthier future for generations to come.
In the hit dystopian TV series Severance, employees at biotech corporation Lumon Industries find it easy to separate work and home life. A computer chip is inserted in their brains to act as a “mindwipe”. They leave all thoughts of home behind while at work, and completely forget about their work when at home.
While the show explores the pitfalls of such a split in consciousness, there’s no denying it’s a tantalising prospect to be able to “flick the off switch” and forget about work whenever you’re not actually supposed to be working.
This is known as “psychological detachment”. People who can do it are happier and healthier, and experience less fatigue. But many of us struggle to detach and disconnect mentally from work, particularly when our jobs are demanding and stressful.
It may not be enough simply to be physically away from work, particularly in an era when so many of us work from home. We also have to stop thinking about work when we’re not there – whether it’s fretting over your to-do list while out at dinner, thinking about your unanswered emails while you’re at your daughter’s soccer game, or lying in bed pondering what you’ll say at tomorrow’s board meeting.
The art of detachment
Your choice of activity outside work can be crucial to this process of psychological detachment. To learn more about what strategies are most effective, my research surveyed nurses who were working shifts in hospital emergency departments in 2020, a highly stressful work environment.
My colleagues and I collected data from 166 nurses, using a survey called the Recovery Experience Questionnaire. This included collecting information about the underlying psychological experiences associated with home-time activities, such as feeling relaxed while reading a book or going for a walk.
Importantly, our survey results also showed nurses who were better able to forget about work had less fatigue and better physical and mental health.
Our results identified three key strategies that helped our survey participants to reduce fatigue and mentally recover from work:
exercise
spending time with family and friends
leisure pursuits.
The physical benefits of exercise are well known. But exercising – whether it’s doing yoga, going for a run or playing netball – also brings mental benefits by encouraging you to focus deeply on what you’re doing rather than dwelling on outside thoughts.
Friendship and social connection are also good for our wellbeing. Research suggests people who have plenty of friends and confidants are less likely to die from chronic disease. And one study found people who undertake a difficult task with the help of a friend have fewer abrupt changes in heart rate than those who tackle the task alone.
Deliberately making time to spend with family, friends or pets can help us forget about work at home, and to centre our attention instead on what is important to us besides work.
Many of the nurses in our study reduced the effects of fatigue during home time by pursuing hobbies and interests such as sewing or gardening. But you shouldn’t worry too much about what specific activity you pursue – the main thing is to pick something you find pleasurable and engaging, and which fits comfortably around your existing commitments.
Leave your work at work
Finally, switching off from work also means not letting your work come home with you. Where possible, complete all your daily tasks so these aren’t on your mind at home. Unplug from work-related technology by not checking work emails or texts.
Of course, technology and working from home have now made separating work and home even harder. But setting healthy routines can help put mental as well as physical boundaries around your work time – even when your workplace is in the next room.