A janitorial company, Fayette Janitorial Service, has been fined $649,000 for hiring minors as young as 13 to clean slaughterhouses, violating federal labor laws. The United States Department of Labor conducted an investigation and found that at least 24 children were employed by the company to work overnight shifts in hazardous conditions at two separate slaughter facilities. These minors were engaged in tasks that are prohibited for children in slaughtering and meat packaging plants, such as using or cleaning machinery. In response to the investigation, Fayette must pay the fine, hire a third party to prevent instances of child labor, and establish a system for reporting concerns about underage employment.
The company stated that the use of fraudulent identification documents allowed individuals under the age of 18 to circumvent their policies and procedures, leading to the situation. Fayette claimed to have made substantial investments in proprietary systems and technologies to prevent such incidents from happening again. Despite the violation, Fayette reiterated their commitment to maintaining a safe and compliant work environment for all employees. The company also mentioned that they have cooperated with the Department of Labor throughout the investigation process.
The DOL found that children were working at the Seaboard Triumph Foods Plant in Iowa and a Perdue Farms poultry processing facility in Virginia. Minors were involved in cleaning dangerous equipment on the kill floor, such as head splitters, jaw pullers, meat bandsaws, and neck clippers, at these facilities. Perdue Farms terminated their contract with Fayette Janitorial Services prior to the court filing, emphasizing that underage labor has no place in their business or industry. Seaboard, a pork processor, also ended all contracts with Fayette in response to the investigation.
Instances of illegal child labor have been on the rise, with other companies facing fines for employing minors in hazardous occupations. Packers Sanitation Services paid $1.5 million in civil penalties last year for similar violations related to employing minors and having them work overnight shifts. The Department of Labor’s investigation into Fayette Janitorial Service is part of ongoing efforts to enforce labor laws and ensure the safety of all workers, particularly when it comes to protecting children from dangerous work environments. The issue of underage labor continues to be a concern, and companies found in violation face significant penalties and consequences for their actions.