Subway and Burger King franchisees in South Carolina violated child-labor laws by letting minors work late shifts or too many hours, the labor department says

• The DOL has fined restaurant operators in South Carolina for violating child-labor laws.
• They let minors work late shifts or too many hours or undertake tasks that they're not allowed to.

Some operators of fast-food restaurants in South Carolina have been fined by the labor department for allegedly violating child-labor laws.

The Department of Labor (DOL) said Wednesday that operators of some Subway, Burger King, and Popeyes restaurants had broken the law by letting minors work late shifts or too many hours a week, or undertake tasks that they're not allowed to.

The restaurants "illegally employed workers under the age of 18 at hours and in occupations that jeopardized their safety," the DOL said.

An operator of four Subway stores in South Carolina had let 13 employees aged 14 and 15 work past 9 p.m. during summer months. Another Subway operator in the state allowed five 15-year-olds to work past 7 p.m. in non-summer months, per the DOL. This breaches laws on how late minors are allowed to work.

Four of these minors at the latter operator were also employed in "prohibited baking activities," the DOL said. Workers aged 14 and 15 can prepare food as part of their job, but can't bake, remove items from ovens, or place products on cooling trays under federal labor law.

A large Burger King franchise operator allowed two 15-year-old employees in South Carolina to break a law that caps the number of hours they can work per week during school weeks at 18, the DOL said. Three 15-year-old workers at an operator of Popeyes restaurants in South Carolina were also allowed to work more than 18 hours per week during school weeks, per the DOL.

PLC Dev Group, the Popeyes operator, which has nine locations in South Carolina and one in North Carolina, also "clocked out some employees automatically while they continued to perform work," the DOL said. It added that it had recovered $2,031 in overtime back wages and liquidated damages for nine workers across the operator's locations.

And three 16-year-old employees who were allowed to work as delivery drivers at Frodo's Pizza in Greenville, South Carolina, violating a federal law that prevents employees aged 16 and under from driving vehicles as part of their job.

Subway, Burger King, Popeyes, and Frodo's did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, made outside of normal working hours.

"Restaurant industry employers must understand and comply with child labor laws concerning hours and occupations," Jamie Benefiel, district director of the DOL's Wage and Hour Division in Columbia, South Carolina.

"Industry employers, workers and their parents should contact us with their questions about youth employment laws. The kinds of violations found in these South Carolina investigations – and the penalties associated with them – could have been avoided."

The Wage and Hour Division's Southeast region found child-labor violations at more than 190 food-service employers in fiscal years 2020 and 2021, and assessed penalties of more than $1 million.

The DOL didn't say when the above-mentioned offences were committed but restaurants have been struggling to hire and retain staff during the pandemic. This means existing employees are working longer hours.

In October, Wisconsin's Senate approved a bill that would allow 14- and 15-year-olds to work until 11 p.m. during the summer, and supporters said it could help plug the state's labor shortage.