After an investigation conducted by the Office of the Attorney General in Washington, D.C., identified more than 800 potential child labor law violations related to Chipotle restaurants, the company is facing consequences.
Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb announced Monday that Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. must pay the District of Columbia $322,400 and adopt a new, comprehensive training and workplace compliance plan. He explained that the fast-casual restaurants “failed to abide by legal caps on the number of hours minors are allowed to work.”
“We applaud young people who take the initiative to work in addition to going to school. But the law limits the hours they can work to ensure they are healthy, well-rested, and able to fulfill their responsibilities as students and to their families,” he said.
According to a press release from Schwalb, the OAG began investigating labor practices at Chipotle’s 20 locations in D.C. last May. This investigation was prompted by reports of alleged labor violations from other jurisdictions where Chipotle was alleged to have violated other states’ child labor laws.
Last September the New Jersey Department of Labor announced that they reached a “groundbreaking” $7.75 million settlement with the company over child labor law violations. In April, the National Labor Relations Board reached a $240,000 settlement related to labor violations, though those were not related to minor employees.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “the federal child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) were enacted to ensure that when young people work, the work is safe and does not jeopardize their health, well-being or educational opportunities.”
In Washington D.C., child labor laws prohibit employers from having minors work past 10 p.m., working more than eight hours in a day, working more than six consecutive days in a workweek, or working more than 48 hours in a work week. There, the OAG investigation found those more-than-800 violations over a span of three years.
“We are committed to ensuring that our restaurants are in full compliance with applicable laws and regulations and we believe that in hiring workers beginning at age 16, we can provide younger employees with valuable experiences and an opportunity for advancement,” said Chipotle Mexican Grill Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Laurie Schalow told ABC News in a statement. “We have reached a settlement with the Washington, D.C. Office of the Attorney General for the events dating back to 2020, and have implemented an enhanced labor scheduling program in our restaurants, creating a more efficient, consistent and compliant environment.”
In addition to paying $322,400, Chipotle agreed to implement new formal policies and procedures to ensure future compliance with District labor laws, provide formal training on the District’s child labor laws to all restaurant managers and supervisors within the District and to ensure that store managers personally review the District’s child labor laws with all newly hired minor employees at onboarding.
Chipotle Tuesday announced a new employee recruitment campaign.
“So far, the organization is on track to create over 7,000 new jobs this year,” said a press release.
Related
Related
