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Department of Labor Sues Hyundai U.S. Over Child Labor
The U.S. Department of Labor filed a complaint yesterday asking a Federal Court to prevent three Alabama companies, including a Hyundai U.S. manufacturing plant, from employing children illegally. The suit also requests that the court require the three companies to surrender (disgorge in legalese) profits related to the use of oppressive child labor. Parts involved in the child labor suit are used in Hyundai Santa Cruz, Santa Fe and Tucson models. Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama LLC operates a plant in Montgomery. At the time of the events now before the court, SMART Alabama LLC manufactured component parts in Luverne. Best Practice Service LLC was a staffing agency in Montgomery that supplied labor to SMART Alabama.
“A 13-year-old working on an assembly line in the United States of America shocks the conscience,” said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Jessica Looman. “As we work to stop illegal child labor where we find it, we also continue to ensure that all employers are held accountable for violating the law.”
The department’s Office of the Solicitor filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama in Montgomery. The action results from an investigation by DOL’s Wage and Hour Division. It found that a 13-year-old worked up to 50-60 hours per week on an assembly line in Luverne, Alabama operating machines that formed sheet metal into auto body parts. In the complaint filed, the department named three companies as defendants, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, SMART Alabama and Best Practice Service. Best Practice Service sent the child to SMART Alabama, which provided component parts to Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama. In the complaint, the department alleged that all three companies jointly employed the child.
During fiscal year 2023, the department investigated 955 cases with child labor violations, involving 5792 children nationwide, including 502 children employed in violation of hazardous occupation standards. TheDepartment addressed those violations by assessing employer more than $8 million in civil money penalties. The Wage and Hour Division offers confidential compliance assistance to anyone – regardless of where they are from – with questions about the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and other federal labor laws. Workers and employers can call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). The division can speak with callers in more than 200 languages.
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