" Allowing kids to work on construction sites clearly falls under this definition."
Go stick it!
No one could have stopped me from working construction when I was 14. It was illegal, I knew it and did it anyway, it was my choice.
I'm 66 and still working construction and hopefully will be able to continue to do it until i'm at least 80, haven't killed myself yet.
We don't let kids consent to certain activities, no matter how ready they are. Would it be okay if the family business was a strip club and dad wanted his teenage daughters to acquire a work ethic by giving lap dances?
No one could have stopped me from working construction when I was 14. It was illegal, I knew it and did it anyway, it was my choice.
Judging from your attitude, you might be deserving of some insults, but I think I'll just state that I'm glad I never had to work on a crew with you. You sound like you just might be a hazard to yourself and others. I have worked with individuals who held attitudes similar to yours when I was a wildland firefighter, individuals who eschewed wearing safety equipment or following safety rules knowing it was illegal, but did it anyways because it was their choice. One guy ended up with a chainsaw in his thigh (not wearing chaps); another almost lost an eye (no safety glasses); another hit a crewmate in the back of the leg with a pulaski by not maintaining proper spacing while digging line (good thing for calf-high boots); and a crew captain I worked with once (who I immediately did not trust) ended up getting the crew he was leading burned over the following season by not heeding watchout situations and by failing to follow the fire safety orders, although luckily no one was seriously injured.
By and large, safety equipment and rules exist for a reason, to provie protection in dangerous jobs.