Slaughterhouse cleaning company fined $649,000 for child workers

A janitorial company has been fined $649,000 after an investigation found it hired minors for dangerous jobs cleaning slaughterhouses, the United States Department of Labor said Monday.

A janitorial company has been fined $649,000 after an investigation found it hired minors for dangerous jobs cleaning slaughterhouses, the United States Department of Labor said Monday. Fayette Janitorial Service had employed at least 24 children, including those as young as 13, according to the DOL investigation. The minors had been working overnight shifts at two separate slaughter facilities, according to the DOL. Federal labor law bans children from certain jobs in slaughtering and meat packaging plants, including using or cleaning machinery, due to the hazardous conditions. In addition to paying the fine, Fayette must hire a third party to prevent instances of child labor and set up a way to report concerns that children are being employed. “The realization that the use of fraudulent identification documents had allowed individuals under the age of 18 to circumvent our policies and procedures required immediate action,” Fayette said in a statement sent to CNN, adding that “substantial investments in proprietary systems and technologies has closed the gap that allowed this situation to arise.” The company added that it has cooperated with the DOL, and that “our goal remains to ensure a safe and compliant work environment for all of our employees.”