Two 10-year-old children were found working into the early morning hours at a Kentucky McDonald’s restaurant the US Department of Labor said Tuesday in a news statement.
The children sometimes worked until 2 a.m., according to an investigation into child labor law violations in the Southeast, The Washington Post reported.
“Investigators from the department’s Wage and Hour Division found two 10-year-old workers at a Louisville McDonald’s restaurant among many violations of federal labor laws committed by three Kentucky McDonald’s franchise operators,” according to the news release.
“Investigators also determined two 10-year-old children were employed – but not paid – and sometimes worked as late as 2 a.m.”
The investigation showed that three franchisees that own more than 60 McDonald’s locations in Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland and Ohio, “employed 305 children to work more than the legally permitted hours and perform tasks prohibited by law for young workers.
“These reports are unacceptable, deeply troubling and run afoul of the high expectations we have for the entire McDonald’s brand. Tiffanie Boyd, senior vice president and chief people officer at McDonald’s USA, told CNN.
“We are committed to ensuring our franchisees have the resources they need to foster safe workplaces for all employees and maintain compliance with all labor laws.”
CNN reported that the 10-year-olds are the children of a night manager who were visiting their parent at work and were not approved by franchisee organization management to be in that part of the restaurant, according to the franchisee.
The three franchisees together will face $212,754 in civil money penalties for child labor violations, according to the release.
“Too often, employers fail to follow the child labor laws that protect young workers,” said Karen Garnett-Civils, the agency’s wage and hour division district director, in a statement. “Under no circumstances should there ever be a 10-year-old child working in a fast-food kitchen around hot grills, ovens and deep fryers.”
