The Sad Truth Behind Happy Meals: How McDonald's is exploiting child workers

Children in the United States are now working longer hours and taking jobs that were previously prohibited. This comes as a result of government efforts to relax child labour laws in some parts of the country. Two ten-year-old kids were working unpaid shifts at a Kentucky McDonald’s, sometimes until two in the morning, according to a recent investigation by the US department of labour into three McDonald’s locations in the southeastern state. The franchisees were slapped with civil fines totalling $212,754 (more than Rs 1.73 crore) for the offences. Child labour violations at McDonald’s The franchisees include Louisville-based Bauer Food, Walton, Kentucky-based Archways Richwood, and Louisville-based Bell Restaurant Group, according to The Guardian. They run over 93 per cent of the brand outlets globally. The unidentified children worked in a Louisville restaurant’s kitchen, drive-through, and cash register, as well as cleaning the floors, reported Mirror. One of the kids was even permitted to operate the deep fat fryer, which is prohibited for anyone under the age of 18 due to the “dangerous equipment” it requires. This posed a major risk to the children. The investigation also revealed that the franchisees employed 14 and 15-year-olds who worked longer than the daily and weekly limits for minors and outside of those limits, including instances where the workers were at work during school hours. The probe also named two other McDonald’s franchise owners, who together owned 62 stores in Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland, and Ohio, as per UK-based Daily Express. It was suddenly discovered that they employed 305 kids who were working longer hours than allowed and doing duties that were illegal for their age. Also read: Apple accused of using child labour to mine cobalt, promises to switch to 100% recycled cobalt by 2025 It’s not the first time According to a news release by the Department of Labour, a franchise owner of seven McDonald’s restaurants in Erie and Warren, Pennsylvania, in February 2023 was fined for hiring children as young as 14 and 15 in violation of federal laws against child labour. The fast food franchisee also violated the law by asking nine 16-year-old workers to operate deep-fat fryers. The offences, which affected 154 young workers at the eateries, resulted in civil monetary fines of $92,107 (~Rs 75.29 lakh). In the month of December last year, the department had penalised another Pennsylvania-based McDonald’s franchisee with 13 outlets in the Pittsburgh region for child labour breaches involving 101 minors. Allowing minors to work after 9 pm at night, for longer than eight hours during the school week, and for longer than three hours each day and after 7 pm on school days are all breaches. For those offences, a civil penalty of $57,332 (~Rs 46.87 lakh) was imposed. Increasing child labour violations in the US The federal child labour bill was enacted by the US Congress in 1906, prohibiting the transport in interstate commerce of goods produced or mined by children under the age of 14. Several American states, especially those controlled by the Republicans, are rolling back these laws. Child labour violations have increased since 2015, according to a statement by the Department of Labour. US child labour law offences have surged, with a 37 per cent increase in the fiscal year 2022, as per the labour investigations. Over 688 minors were found working in hazardous situations. The actual number of violations is likely much higher as these are just documented numbers. According to The Guardian, the agriculture sector in the country employs between 300,000 and 500,000 minors annually. From 2001 to 2015, 48 per cent of all fatalities involving young workers occurred in this sector. High-profile investigations into child labour have come to light, including the exploitation of children in the supply chains for Hyundai and Kia in Alabama, JBS meatpacking plants in Nebraska and Minnesota, and fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s, Dunkin Donuts, and Chipotle. The outlet quoted wage and hour division district director Karen Garnett-Civils in Louisville, Kentucky, as saying, “We are seeing an increase in federal child labour violations, including allowing minors to operate equipment or handle types of work that endangers them or employs them for more hours or later in the day than federal laws allow. An employer who hires young workers must know the rules. An employer, parent or young worker with questions can contact us for help understanding their obligations and rights under the law.”

America relaxing child labour laws Advocates who are seeking to roll back child labour regulations claim a lack of workers, especially in sectors depending on young people. They have also cited the increasing child labour offences as one of the reasons. Republican lawmakers in Iowa introduced a bill in January this year to broaden the kinds of work that 14 and 15-year-olds would be allowed to do. Approved training programmes, increase in the number of hours, and exempt employers from liability if these young workers become ill, hurt, or killed while on the job are some of the modifications. Lawmakers in Ohio reintroduced a bipartisan bill that would have allowed 14- and 15-year-olds to work longer hours with a parent’s or guardian’s permission, according to Ohio Capital Journal. They also called on Congress to enact similar rollbacks at the federal level, as per The Guardian. In January 2023, legislators in Minnesota submitted a bill to increase the number of hours that 14- and 15-year-olds can work. According to the outlet, Republicans in Wisconsin passed a law that would have increased the number of hours that 14- and 15-year-olds could work, but Governor Tony Evers overrode it this month. A similar bill was enacted by New Jersey governor Phil Murphy, in 2022, allowing 16 and 17-year-olds to work longer hours during the summer and on holidays and extending the workday for 14 and 15-year-olds. In 2022, a Republican congressman Dave Joyce of Ohio developed legislation at the federal level to extend the working hours of 14- and 15-year-olds while school is in session. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.