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The youth employment provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) were enacted to ensure that when youth work, the work is safe and does not jeopardize their health, well-being, or education.  The FLSA provides for a minimum age of 18 years in occupations found and declared by the Secretary of Labor to be particularly hazardous or detrimental to the health or well-being of youths 16 and 17 years of age in nonagricultural employment.  Hazardous Occupations Orders (HOs) are the means by which the Secretary declares certain occupations to be particularly hazardous for these youth.  The Department’s nonagricultural regulations provide limited exemptions from the HOs for apprentices and student learners who are working under certain conditions.  In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Department will consider whether certain HOs as well as the conditions that apply to the employment of all apprentices and student learners in hazardous occupations, should be updated to reflect the current economic and work environments and to allow for safe and meaningful apprenticeship opportunities and student-learner programs.