Date of action:                       April 6, 2023

Type of action:                      Fair Labor Standards Act consent order and permanent injunction

Names of defendants:           Pigeon Forge Hospitality, LLC

                                                 Nimesh Patel

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services today announced a Memorandum of Agreement to advance ongoing efforts to address child labor exploitation. 

MORRISTOWN, TN – A U.S. Department of Labor child labor investigation has found that the operator of a McDonald’s franchise location in Morristown assigned a 15-year-old employee – who suffered hot oil burns while using a deep fryer – to perform tasks considered hazardous for young workers.

ORLANDO, FL – It’s likely that the decisions Juan Felipe Gomez Toro made one day in February 2022 turned out to be more costly to his Lake Mary roofing contracting company than he might have imagined.

ORLANDO, FL - Es probable que las decisiones que Juan Felipe Gómez Toro tomó un día de febrero de 2022 resultaran más costosas para su empresa contratista de tejados de Lake Mary de lo que podría haber imaginado.

WASHINGTON – Since 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor has seen a 69 percent increase in children being employed illegally by companies. In the last fiscal year, the department found 835 companies it investigated had employed more than 3,800 children in violation of labor laws. The maximum civil monetary penalty under current law for a child labor violation is $15,138 per child. That’s not high enough to be a deterrent for major profitable companies.

ERIE, PA – A federal investigation has found the franchise operator of seven McDonald’s locations in Erie and Warren illegally allowed 154 minors, ages 14- and 15-years-old, to work at times not permitted by child labor laws and for more hours per week than allowed. The employer also assigned nine workers under age 16 to operate deep fryers in violation of federal law.

KIELER, WI – Uno de los proveedores de servicios de higiene y seguridad alimentaria más grandes del país ha pagado $1.5 millones en multas luego de que la División de Horas y Salarios del Departamento de Trabajo de los EE.UU. descubrió que la empresa empleó al menos a 102 niños de entre 13 y 17 años de edad en ocupaciones peligrosas y trabajando en turnos de noche en 13 instalaciones de procesamiento de carne en ocho estados.

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

                        9950 Southside Blvd.

                        Jacksonville, FL 32256

KIELER, WI – One of the nation’s largest food safety sanitation services providers has paid $1.5 million in civil money penalties after the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found the company employed at least 102 children – from 13 to 17 years of age – in hazardous occupations and had them working overnight shifts at 13 meat processing facilities in eight states.

LANCASTER, KY – Una planta procesadora de carne de Lancaster permitió a ocho empleados menores de edad trabajar fuera de las horas permitidas por el gobierno federal y realizar trabajos peligrosos, según descubrió una investigación federal.

LANCASTER, KY – A Lancaster meat processing plant allowed eight minor-aged employees to work outside of federally allowed hours and engage in hazardous work, a federal investigation has found.

TAMPA, FL – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found two operators of Tampa-area Tropical Smoothie Café franchise locations failed to pay workers their full wages, allowed minor-aged employees to work more hours than the law allows when school is in session, and permitted some minors to illegally load a trash compactor.

MANCHESTER, NH – A federal investigation recovered $36,106 in back wages and liquidated damages from a Cape Elizabeth, Maine, café, bakery and market for 86 employees after finding the employer denied some workers their full wages and allowed minor-aged workers to perform hazardous jobs and work more hours than allowed by law.

COLUMBIA, SC – What began as a child labor investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor at one Arby’s restaurant location in Laurens, expanded to include other restaurants operated by the same business operator who was found to be allowing 65 minor-aged employees to work outside of federally allowed work hours.