Win.IT America has entered a federal consent judgment to stop illegally employing children and to not violate federal child labor laws in the future. The court prohibits the Hebron, Kentucky facility from “oppressively” violating child labor laws.
The order was entered in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky on September 8, 2023. Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division discovered the children working in the distribution center in August 2023. The two children, ages 11 and 13, were employed for months.
The violations included employing a child to operate a forklift, which is a hazardous occupation for workers under the age of 18, and told another child to pick orders in the warehouse, which is a prohibited occupation for workers under the age of 16. In addition, the company employed both children for more hours than is legally allowed. They also violated federal regulations that forbid employers from hiring workers under the age of 14 in non-agricultural occupations.
Regional Solicitor Tremelle Howard said in a statement, “Businesses must comply with the federal child labor regulations. Federal law ensures young workers can benefit by gaining valuable work experience without endangering their safety or hampering their education.” Howard added, “When we find child labor violations, the Department of Labor will not hesitate to use all enforcement tools available to compel compliance, including stopping the shipment of goods created and produced while the business was breaking the law to do so.”
Win.IT America was also ordered to pay $30,276 in civil money penalties, and must hire a third party consultant to provide semi-annual compliance training for all management personnel for the next three years.
Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Juan Coria said that there is an “alarming increase” in child labor violations in the United States. He said, “Employers are responsible for taking all appropriate actions to verify that they are not illegally employing children. When they fail to meet these obligations, we will act swiftly to hold them accountable and protect our nation’s youth.”
Founded in October 2013, Win.IT America Inc. is the U.S. branch of WinIT Information Technology Co., a Shanghai, China-based integrated supply chain solutions provider with more than 700 employees in the United States, Australia, Germany, and Great Britain.
