The U.S. Department of Labor’s investigation of a Bristol restaurant identified 20 child labor violations, including allowing a 15-year-old to use a blowtorch for food preparation and another 15-year-old to clean a meat slicer.
In addition to permitting two children to perform dangerous work, the department’s Wage and Hour Division found Homestead Restaurant Inc., operating as Homestead Restaurant & Tavern, employed 16 minors outside of the hour and time limitations permitted under federal law, and employed two 13-year-old children as bussers. The Fair Labor Standards Act forbids employers from hiring children under the age of 14 in covered non-agricultural industries such as food service, and makes employing children under age 18 in dangerous jobs illegal.
“First jobs are an important part of growing up, but no job is worth endangering the safety and well-being of children,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Steven McKinney in Manchester, New Hampshire. “The Fair Labor Standards Act allows employers to provide these learning experiences as long as they make sure young workers’ safety and education are never jeopardized.”
In addition to agreeing to pay $151,211 in child labor civil money penalties, Homestead Restaurant Inc. signed a compliance agreement to guarantee and enhance child labor safeguards and prevent future violations at the Bristol location, as well as at another Homestead location in Merrimack, and at Fratello’s Italian Grille in Laconia and Fratello’s Ristorante Italiano in Manchester, which have the same owner.
In the agreement, the restaurants will take the following steps:
- Train managers on child labor regulations and hold them accountable for compliance.
- Refrain from employing workers under the age of 14.
- Provide all employees under the age of 18 with child labor publications and fact sheets.
- Perform monthly spot checks of minors’ time sheets for compliance.
- Develop and implement a comprehensive policy for employing 14- and 15-year-olds, including employee training, a compliance committee, posting of signage, and adjusting their timekeeping system.
“The compliance agreement we reached with Homestead Restaurant Inc. ensures staff and management at its four locations understand all federal child labor requirements. It also protects young workers by providing them with safe and healthy working conditions for years to come,” added McKinney. “The Wage and Hour Division provides outreach and training to employers on compliance with federal wage and child labor laws and encourages them to contact us to help prevent violations from occurring in the first place.”
In fiscal year 2023, the division found nearly 5,800 children employed nationally in violation of federal law, including more than 500 illegally employed in hazardous occupations, and assessed more than $8 million in child labor-related penalties, up 83 percent from the previous year.
The department’s YouthRules! initiative promotes positive and safe work experiences for teens by providing information about protections for young workers to youth, parents, employers and educators. Through this initiative, the department and its partners promote developmental work experiences that help prepare young workers to enter the workforce.