'How do we stop companies from exploiting this?' one Democrat asked.

Those who work in apprenticeship, internship or work-study programs could be paid less than minimum wage under legislation that cleared a Senate panel Monday.

The bill ( SB 676 ) would allow employees to check a box when applying for the job allowing them to be paid less than Florida’s current $13 per hour. An amendment to the bill added in the Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee will require the parent or guardian of a worker under age 18 to approve the sub-minimum wage pay.

“Because the minimum wage was so high I saw a lot of young students, teenagers missing out on opportunities like we (had),” said state Sen. Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers, who is sponsoring the bill.

The bill passed 4-3 on a party line vote. Democrats on the panel questioned the need for the legislation and whether it would allow companies to abuse the law by labeling all entry-level jobs as “apprenticeships” or “internships.”

“How do we stop companies from exploiting this particular idea?” said Sen. Tracie Davis, D-Jacksonville. She cited grocery baggers at Publix as an example of those who could be exploited.

But Martin said since the entire program is optional for the employees, it would be self-regulating.

“The employee could quit. They wouldn’t have to sign this,” Martin said, noting a worker could leave after a few months with the skills they gained on the job to get a better paying one somewhere else, too. “It’s giving them that ability to then become competitive.”

It’s not the first time Martin has pushed a bill to undercut the minimum wage.

Previous legislation carved out minor league baseball players

In 2023 he sponsored a law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis carving out minor league baseball players from the state’s minimum wage laws. Major League Baseball owners unanimously approved a collective bargaining agreement that year to pay minor league players more money.

Underlying the minimum wage debate is the gap between Florida’s minimum wage and the federal minimum wage , which stands at $7.25 per hour. The federal rate hasn’t changed since 2009, despite rampant inflation in the last two years that has eroded the purchasing power of those making minimum wage.

The gap between Florida’s wage floor and the federal government’s began to grow after voters approved an amendment in 2020 to raise the state minimum wage by $1 per year, until hitting $15 per hour on Oct. 1, 2026.

Even one Republican, Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, was skittish on the bill. He urged Martin to restrict it to only workers age 18 and younger, or have it apply only for a certain amount of time.

“I’m going to vote for it today … only because I know if I don’t this bill will die,” said Gruters, a former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida and a staunch ally of President Donald Trump.

But Martin insists the bill is needed to help prospective workers gain skills in an apprenticeship program they wouldn't otherwise be able to obtain because businesses couldn’t afford to hire at the state minimum wage.

“If we think that $13 an hour is what a bag boy at a grocery store should be making in rural Florida, I think we have a misconception of what’s reasonable or we’re not relating it to the costs of goods and services anymore,” he said.

Gray Rohrer is a reporter with the USA TODAY Network-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at . Follow him on X: @GrayRohrer .