In its report accompanying the 1974 amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Senate Labor Committee concluded that in general child labor in agriculture was physically and mentally detrimental to the health and well-being of participating children, acting as a social depressant, stunting their intellectual growth and capacity, and resulting in economic exploitation negatively affecting the local adult wage rate. Congress, therefore, adopted legislation prohibiting the employment in agriculture of all children under the age of 12 except those working on farms owned or operated by their parents or guardians, or with the consent of their parents or guardians on farms exempt from the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the act by virtue of the 500 man-day test. In both exceptions, the children must be employed outside school hours in the school district where they reside. Opponents of the legislation suggested that the amendments have created isolated situations of severe economic hardship which could be legislatively remedied without any negative side effects on those children being protected. This hearing examined the arguments both pro and con for this position within the framework of the 3 premises on which the decision was made to prohibit the agricultural employment of children under 12--the physical effects on the children, the social effects on the community, and the economic impact on the area's wage structure. (NQ)