A Clarkesville Zaxby's was recently fined $15,000 by the U.S. Department of Labor on allegations of child labor violations.
According to a press release from the agency, the Zaxby's allegedly allowed 19 employees who were 14 and 15 years old to work outside of legally allowed hours. This was a violation of the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
"Specifically, the employer let the minors work during school hours, more than three hours on a school day and more than eight hours on a non-school day, more than 18 hours during a school week and before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m.," the release reads.
The Zaxby's, operating under Mcdreams Enterprises Inc., also allegedly allowed 15-year-old employees to operate a deep fryer without automatic controls to lift the fry basket in and out of the hot oil or grease, which is prohibited under the FSLA's child labor standards provisions.
"Investigators also learned Mcdreams Enterprises Inc. failed to meet the minimum weekly salary of $684 for two general managers," the release said. "By doing so, the employer lost its right to claim an overtime exemption for these employees and owed them a time-and-a-half rate of pay for hours over 40 in a workweek."
The franchise was fined $15,979 to address the alleged child labor violations, and the Department of Labor also recovered $1,177 in back wages and liquidated damages for two employees.
“With the widespread employment of minors in the restaurant industry, many employers must understand the laws that govern when, how often and how long minors work, and the tasks they are assigned," Wage and Hour Division District Director Steven Salazar in Atlanta said. “Employers must carefully observe the fine line between giving minors meaningful work experience and putting their safety, well-being and schooling opportunities at risk. We encourage, employers, parents, educators and young workers to use the variety of resources we provide and attend our upcoming webinar on April 26, to learn their obligations and rights under the law.”
The department will hold a webinar on child labor regulations for employers, minor-aged workers and their parents, school representatives and other stakeholders on April 26 from 1.m. to 12 p.m. The webinar is free but registration is required.
