Update: At the Marshall Independent, Deb Gau reports Turkey Valley Farms' response in Labor probe: Cleaning contractor allegedly hired minors to work at Turkey Valley:
In a statement Friday, Turkey Valley Farms said it was watching the actions against PSSI.
“Turkey Valley Farms takes these allegations very seriously, and we are reviewing the matter internally,” the statement said. “We expect all contractors to share our commitment to the health and safety of any individuals working in our facilities and to adhere to these principles that foster a safe work environment as well as to all applicable federal and state labor laws. We are closely monitoring the Department of Labor’s Actions with regard to Packers Sanitation Services, Inc. and will take all appropriate action, based on the outcome of the investigation.” [end update]
A reader sent me a tweet about the story by Bring Me The News:
2 Minnesota meat plants accused of child labor violationshttps://t.co/ZfiSzZjK55
— Bring Me The News (@bringmethenews) November 11, 2022
According to the press release from the federal Department of Labor, both companies hired Packers Sanitation Services Inc. LTD to clean at their plants during hazardous night shifts:
Department finds 31 children working overnight shifts in hazardous occupations
LINCOLN, NE – The U.S. Department of Labor today asked a federal court to issue a nationwide temporary restraining order and injunction against Packers Sanitation Services Inc. LTD – one of the nation’s leading providers of food safety sanitation – to stop the company from illegally employing dozens of minor-aged workers while the department continues its investigation of the company’s labor practices.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for Nebraska in Lincoln, the complaint was prompted by an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division that discovered that PSSI had employed at least 31 children – from 13 to 17 years of age – in hazardous occupations. The jobs performed by children included cleaning dangerous powered equipment during overnight shifts to fulfill sanitation contracts at JBS USA plants in Grand Island, Nebraska and Worthington, Minnesota, and at Turkey Valley Farms in Marshall, Minnesota.
Investigators also learned that several minors employed by PSSI – including one 13-years-old – suffered caustic chemical burns and other injuries.
In its filing, the department alleges the food sanitation contractor interfered with an investigation by intimidating minor workers to stop them from cooperating with investigators. PSSI also allegedly deleted and manipulated employment files.
“The Department of Labor will use every available legal resource to protect workers – regardless of their age – and hold to account those employers who mistakenly believe they can violate the Fair Labor Standards Act, obstruct federal investigations, and retaliate against workers who assert their rights,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Christine Heri in Chicago.
The investigation at PSSI began on Aug. 24, 2022, when the division received credible information alleging the company assigned minors to work in hazardous occupation. The division executed warrants for the company’s operations at the three plants, its local offices and at PSSI’s Keiler, Wisconsin, corporate office.
“Federal laws were established decades ago to prevent employers from profiting by putting children in harm’s way,” said Wage and Hour Regional Administrator Michael Lazzeri in Chicago. “Taking advantage of children, exposing them to workplace dangers – and interfering with a federal investigation – demonstrates Packers Sanitation Services Inc.’s flagrant disregard for the law and for the well-being of young workers.”
PSSI provides contract sanitation services, chemical innovations, pest prevention and other solutions for about 700 food processing facilities nationwide and employs about 17,000 workers.
The FLSA prohibits minors under the age of 14 from working and 14- and 15-year-old employees from working later than 9 p.m. from June 1 through Labor Day and past 7 p.m., the remainder of the year. Additionally, they cannot work more than 3 hours on a school day, 8 hours on a non-school day or more than 18 hours per week. The law also prohibits minors from operating motor vehicles, forklifts and using other hazardous equipment. To assist employers in avoiding violations, and inform young workers and their parents, the division has published its “Seven Child Labor Best Practices for Employers.”. . .
There's nothing posted yet at the Marshall Independent, but The Globe, Forum News Service paper in Worthington, has posted Emma McNamee's Department of Labor investigates company hired by JBS in which children work in hazardous jobs. McNamee reports:
The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking a nationwide court injunction to stop one of the nation's leading food safety sanitation providers from illegally employing dozens of minor-aged workers at processing facilities — including at JBS in Worthington.
The U.S. Department of Labor asked a federal court to issue a nationwide temporary restraining order and injunction against Packers Sanitation Services Inc. LTD, following an investigation by the Department’s Wage and Hour Division.
According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for Nebraska , PSSI had employed at least 31 children — from 13 to 17 years of age — in hazardous occupations. The jobs performed by children included cleaning dangerous powered equipment during overnight shifts to fulfill sanitation contracts at JBS USA plants in Grand Island, Nebraska and Worthington, and at Turkey Valley Farms in Marshall.
Investigators also reported that several minors employed by PSSI — including a 13-year-old — suffered caustic chemical burns and other injuries.
In its 61-page filing, the department alleges the food sanitation contractor interfered with an investigation by intimidating minor workers to stop them from cooperating with investigators. PSSI also allegedly deleted and manipulated employment files. . . .
Our reader wondered how much state and federal aid the meat plants--JBS in Worthington and Turkey Valley Farms in Marshall--had received. I didn't get a chance to look at the meat-packing giant in Worthington, but Turkey Valley Farms does seem to have benefitted from various incentives--a practice that began when Turkey Valley Farms of Cannon Falls, Minn., announced it was shifting operations to a former Heartland Foods (formerly owned by Hormel/Jennie-O) turkey processing plant in Marshall.
The WC Courier reported in Postville turkey plant to close for good:
Local, county and state officials had negotiated incentive packages with the owner to encourage them to build in Postville. The process became a long and drug out, he said. . . .
Blouin said the company spurned $7 million in incentives put together through local, state and federal collaboration that "the state of Minnesota did not come close to matching."
Brechler said the company appreciated the offers from state and local government and actually delayed its decision on whether to rebuild or relocate. But in the end, the incentives didn't match what it would cost the company in lost production and rebuilding expenses
"It will cost us $5 million to refurbish the plant in Marshall. It would have cost $12 million to rebuild in Postville," he said, noting the $7 million difference. "It's not fair to say that Minnesota did not offer as much incentive because the need wasn't there. . . ."
But it's not as if the firm got nothing in Minnesota (there were a variety of tax exemptions and credits are available to qualified businesses via the Job Opportunity Building Zone (JOBZ)--an example here) And perhaps other programs to assist workforce development,
And there was the $3,946,400 in forgiven PPP loans, according ProPublica's database. That would have kept 374 people working back in 2020 during the depths of the pandemic.
Bluestem can only hope that both JBS and Turkey Valley Farms step up to prevent the exploitation and intimidation of minors illegally hired for hazardous work by their contractors. It's not the days of The Jungle. And fine companies should help defeat hiring practices that harm children.
Photo: Turkey Valley Farms facility in Marshall. Via the Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce.
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