Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Department of Labor has assessed three McDonald’s franchisees — Bauer Food LLC, Archways Richwood LLC and Bell Restaurant Group I LLC — with a total of $212,754 for alleged violations of child labor laws, the agency announced Tuesday. The groups collectively operate 62 McDonald’s locations across Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland and Ohio.
- Among other claims, DOL said Bauer Food employed (but didn’t pay) two 10-year-olds and allowed them to work until 2 a.m., prepare and distribute orders, clean the restaurant, work at the drive-thru window, use a register and even operate the deep fryer, a task off-limits for those under 16. Altogether, the three locations employed a total of 305 minors to work more than legally permitted hours.
- “We are seeing an increase in federal child labor violations, including allowing minors to operate equipment or handle types of work that endangers them or employs them for more hours or later in the day than federal law allows,” said Karen Garnett-Civils, a Wage and Hour Division district director for the DOL. “An employer who hires young workers must know the rules.”
Dive Insight:
Child labor violations remain a focus for the DOL, which noted the investigations into the three franchisees sprung from an “ongoing effort” to combat child labor abuses in the Southeast U.S.
Cases of child labor violations tracked by the DOL have fluctuated in recent years. In fiscal year 2022, DOL noted 835 cases, up from 747 the year before; however, the agency noted a total of 851 and 858 in fiscal years 2020 and 2019, respectively. The number of minors employed in violation of hazardous occupations does appear to be tracking upward over the past several years, as does the civil money penalty amount the DOL is assessing. Last year, DOL levied over $4 million in penalties for the first time in the last decade.
Recently, DOL has noted a few cases of particularly young workers employed in dangerous conditions. A February announcement from the agency pointed to workers as young as 13 in an investigation of meat-packing facilities that spanned multiple states; DOL found youth using hazardous chemicals and cleaning meat processing equipment. In October, the agency obtained a federal court order to stop an Alabama manufacturer of Kia and Hyundai auto parts from employing 13-, 14- and 15-year-old workers.
The Fair Labor Standards Act generally prohibits businesses from employing workers under the age of 14, and limits the hours and types of work that can be performed by individuals under 18.
According to multiple news outlets, Sean Bauer, operator of Bauer Food LLC, said the 10-year-olds were visiting a parent, who worked at the restaurant. He said any work the children performed was at the direction of their parent and without authorization by the franchisee and stated that leadership has since reminded employees of its child visitation policy. HR Dive could not immediately reach Bauer.
Archways Richwood LLC did not respond to a request for comment by press time and HR Dive could not immediately reach Bell Restaurant Group I.
