Journeys shoe store pays $37K in penalties after US Department of Labor finds employer had minors perform prohibited tasks

DOTHAN, AL – A shoe store in Dothan required 16- and 17-year-old employees to drive at night as part of their job responsibilities and place trash in an active compactor, in violation of federal child labor restrictions. These violations led to $37,280 in civil money penalties.

The U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation found that Journeys violated the Fair Labor Standards Act’s regulations that prevent workers under 18 from operating vehicles at night. The division also cited the employer for violating federal labor laws when it allowed minors to load active trash compactors.

“Child labor laws exist to allow minors to benefit from valuable work experience, but never at the expense of their safety, health, well-being and education,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Kenneth Stripling in Birmingham, Alabama. “The sizeable penalties paid in this case should remind those who employ minors to review their employment practices before injuries occur, or worse.”

Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Genesco Inc. sells footwear and accessories in more than 1,450 retail stores under the Journeys, Schuh, Little Burgundy and Johnston & Murphy banners in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The company has approximately 16,000 employees in North America.

For more information about the FLSA and other laws enforced by the division, contact the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division.