Department of Labor releases first child labor violation report of 2024

Just over a week into the new year, the Department of Labor published a new report on child labor violations in the United States. In this tight labor market, demand for child labor has increased, with many working in environments that are dangerous and under conditions that are illegal under federal labor law. The agency issued fines against more than 950 companies for child labor violations during the 2023 fiscal year (1 October 2022 to 30 September 2023), with migrant children at a greater risk because their immigration status can be used to coerce them into more exploitative practices.

A repeat violator highlights weaknesses in the agency’s enforcement mechanisms

On January 9th, a report was released detailing labor law violations at Bojangles franchises owned by BOJ of WNC LLC, which operates 118 locations across Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Tennessee. This report follows a previous investigation in June 2022 that found similar violations, which led to BOJ of WNC LLC entering into an “enhanced compliance agreement.” During the initial investigation, it was found that sixteen minors were working outside of the permitted hours while school was in session, violating the Fair Labor Standards Act. Due to the severity of these findings, the company was required to work with the Department of Labor to implement a training program to avoid child labor violations as well as other practices to avoid future infractions and to protect all workers they employ. Ironically, when the agency released its enforcement action against BOJ of WNC LLC in 2022, Juan Coria, the Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator, pointed to the agreement with the company as an example “of how enforcement and compliance assistance can work hand-in-hand, and it serves as a roadmap for other employers to follow to avoid costly violations.” Since Mr. Coria made these comments, the company has opened twenty-five additional locations.

The more recent investigation that concluded earlier this year found that the company continued to schedule children during school hours or for shifts, the lengths of which violate labor law. Additionally, the team found that young workers, including three 15-year-olds, were given jobs that put them at increased risk for injury, including baking biscuits and using a manual grease fryer. These violations landed the company a civil penalty of $27,586 on top of the $11,744 they were required to pay in 2022.

The repeated violations indicate that the fines issued to companies that violate labor law may not be high enough to discourage exploitative practices. This time around, Mr. Coria did not tout the potential success of the new agreement reached with the company to avoid further infractions. Instead, he focused on the measures that must be taken to ensure that a child’s job does not threaten their “safety and well-being [...] or interfere with their education.” However, researchers at the Economic Policy Institute found that industry groups have supported efforts in close to a dozen states to weaken child labor protections. This is not just an issue because these legal changes undermine federal labor law. The undermining of federal labor law should be of concern because every year, children in the United States die at work when their employers fail to protect them. No person should die at work, and it is particularly tragic when a victim of negligence is a child.