LOUISVILLE, Ky. — 

Two 10-year-olds are among 300 kids who labored at McDonald’s restaurants illegally, a Labor Department investigation of franchisees in Kentucky stumbled on.

Agency investigators stumbled on the 10-year-olds got minute or no pay at a McDonald’s in Louisville, the Labor Department talked about. The franchisee for the Louisville retailer was among three McDonald’s franchisees fined $212,000 in total by the division.

Louisville’s Bauer Meals LLC, which operates 10 McDonald’s locations, employed 24 minors below the age of 16 to work more hours than legally approved, the agency talked about. Amongst those hang been two 10-year-veteran kids. The agency talked about the kids most frequently labored as slack as 2 a.m., however hang been now not paid.

“Underneath the minimal age for employment, they ready and dispensed meals orders, cleaned the retailer, labored at the facility-thru window and operated a register,” the Labor Department talked about Tuesday, in conjunction with that one minute one also was allowed to operate a deep fryer, which is illegitimate job for personnel below 16.

Franchise owner-operator Sean Bauer talked about the two 10-year-olds cited in the Labor Department’s statement hang been visiting their father or mother, a night supervisor, and weren’t workers.

“Any ‘work’ was done at the direction of — and in the presence of — the father or mother without authorization by franchisee organization management or leadership,” Bauer talked about Wednesday in a ready statement, in conjunction with that they’ve since reiterated the minute one visitation protection to workers.

Federal minute one labor regulations set strict limits on the forms of jobs kids can plan and the hours they can work.

The Kentucky investigations are half of an ongoing effort by the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division to cease minute one labor abuses in the Southeast.

“Too frequently, employers fail to follow the minute one labor regulations that defend young workers,” talked about division Director Karen Garnett-Civils. “By no means might perchance maybe also unexcited there ever be a 10-year-veteran minute one working in a swiftly-meals kitchen spherical sizzling grills, ovens and deep fryers.”

As neatly as, Walton-essentially essentially based Archways Richwood LLC and Louisville-essentially essentially based Bell Restaurant Staff I LLC allowed minors ages 14 and 15 to work beyond allowable hours, the division talked about. Archway Richwood did in a roundabout procedure return a name in search of observation and Brdancat Management Inc., which Bell Restaurant Staff is half of, declined observation.

“These reviews are unacceptable, deeply troubling and bustle afoul of the high expectations now we hang for the total McDonald’s set,” McDonald’s USA spokeswoman Tiffanie Boyd talked about. “We’re committed to making definite our franchisees hang the resources they favor to foster valid workplaces for all workers and preserve compliance with all labor regulations.”