US firm slapped with $650K fine for hiring children in meat plants

A sanitation company based in Tennessee has agreed to pay over $650,000 in civil penalties following a federal investigation that discovered the company unlawfully employed minors to work in hazardous conditions at meat processing facilities in Iowa and Virginia.

The U.S. Department of Labor revealed on Monday that Fayette Janitorial Service LLC consented to a judgment that includes the hefty fine and a court order prohibiting the employment of minors. The investigation found that as recently as December 12, children were still employed at an Iowa slaughterhouse.

Under U.S. law, individuals under 18 are not allowed to work in meat processing plants due to the dangerous nature of the work.

The Labor Department found that Fayette employed 15 underage workers at a Perdue Farms facility in Accomac, Virginia, and at least nine at Seaboard Triumph Foods in Sioux City, Iowa. These minors were tasked with cleaning perilous equipment such as head splitters and meat bandsaws under risky conditions where animals are slaughtered and processed.

The investigation highlighted a severe incident involving a 14-year-old who was seriously injured while cleaning equipment at the Virginia plant.

Following the findings, both Perdue Farms and Seaboard Triumph Foods terminated their contracts with Fayette in February.

As part of the settlement, Fayette will engage a third-party consultant to oversee the company’s adherence to child labor laws for at least three years and to conduct training sessions. Additionally, the company is required to set up a hotline for reporting violations of child labor laws.

A Fayette spokesperson stated in February that the company was cooperating with the investigation and emphasized its strict policy against employing minors.

The Labor Department has underscored an increasing trend in child labor violations nationwide, noting incidents such as a fatal accident involving a 16-year-old at a Mississippi poultry plant and the death of another 16-year-old at a Wisconsin sawmill. In a notable case last year, over 100 children were found illegally working at 13 meatpacking plants operated by Packers Sanitation Services Inc., which resulted in the company paying more than $1.5 million in fines.

Recent statistics from the Labor Department show an 88% increase in illegal child employment in the U.S. since 2019.