Jacksonville trampoline park pays $43K in civil penalties for violating child labor laws after US Department of Labor investigation

Employer:      Urban Air Jacksonville LLC, operating as Urban Air Trampoline Park at Southside

                        9950 Southside Blvd.

                        Jacksonville, FL 32256

Investigation findings: U.S. Department of Labor investigators found the Jacksonville indoor adventure park allowed 55 minor-aged employees, 14 and 15 years old, to work after 7 p.m. on a school night, a violation of the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The division also found the employer deducted compensable break times from some employees weekly hours. By doing so, the employer failed to pay overtime premiums when the missing time pushed the employees’ work hours over 40 in the workweek.

Civil money penalties assessed:       $43,505 to address the child labor violations.

Back wages owed to workers:          $558 to 12 employees.

Quote: “Employers who hire minor-aged workers must familiarize themselves with the regulations that govern their employment. Violations and the penalties in this case are avoidable,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús in Orlando, Florida. “We encourage employers, young workers and their parents to reach out to us for help understanding their responsibilities and protections the law requires.”

Background: The division’s investigation into Urban Air Jacksonville follows another investigation of a Charleston, South Carolina trampoline park that was assessed $11,010 in civil money penalties for child labor violations.

Employers can contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 866-4-US-WAGE. Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including information about protections for young workers on the department’s YouthRules! website. Workers can call the Wage and Hour Division confidentially with questions – regardless of their immigration status – and the department can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android Timesheet App for free, which is available in English and Spanish.