Labor department finds Popeyes eatery owner in Troy violated child-work rules
A fast-food Troy franchisee has been fined more than $48,000 as part of a larger investigation by the federal labor department into allegations of violations of child-work rules.
The department announced Tuesday it found the owner of a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen at 4897 Rochester Road had employed 63 teens — ages 14 and 15 — and scheduled them to work more than 18 hours a week and into the evening, beyond what the law allows.
"Child labor laws were enacted nearly a century ago to protect children," Timolin Mitchell, the wage and hour district director in Detroit, said. "Employers that hire teen labor must ensure they follow the law while allowing teens to earn valuable work experience."
The labor department also had concluded last year that teens in a Culver’s franchise in Wixom were working more hours than the law allowed, and had fined that eatery $13,212.
The Popeyes franchise, owned by Michigan Multi-King, was assessed $48,251 in civil penalties, as part of a task force investigation into child labor exploitation that, in 2023, identified 955 cases, and fined employers a total of more than $8 million.
The Free Press left a message seeking comment with Michigan Multi-King.
Some of the labor department's cases went beyond technical rule violations and sloppy bookkeeping and put vulnerable, young children in dangerous situations.
Last February, the New York Times published "Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S.," a report that uncovered widespread child labor exploitation, mostly of migrant child workers.
The reporter traveled to Michigan, and other places, and interviewed more than 100 child workers, some of whom were as young as 13, in 20 states.
The report found various child labor violations, in western Michigan factories and others nationwide that made, among other things, well-known brands, such as Cheetos and Fruit of the Loom.
The report found that "in many parts of the country, middle and high school teachers in English-language learner programs" said it is now common for nearly all their students to "rush off to long shifts after their classes end."
In Grand Rapids, a 15-year-old who had come to America on her own to live with a relative, was employed in a factory where bags of Cheerios were being filled with equipment that had "torn off fingers and ripped open a woman’s scalp."
The report prompted U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten, D-Grand Rapids, to demand officials take steps to address "this appalling state of affairs," making the case that the children in the report "are my constituents, my kids, and I will protect them."
In July, the Free Press reported, Scholten was joined by U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township, who also called for the creation of a child labor protection task force in Congress to urge stronger penalties and better labor law enforcement.
By law, teens 14 and 15 are restricted to working three hours on a school day, eight hours on a non-school day, no more than 18 hours a week, and no later than 9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day, and 7 p.m. the rest of the year.
They also cannot operate motor vehicles, forklifts, and other equipment.
The labor department also urged Tuesday that anyone with a wage complaint or violation concern to report it online at dol.gov/agencies/whd/contact/complaints or on the agency’s toll-free helpline 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243).
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Feds: Eatery owner in Troy employing teens violated labor laws