Dive Brief:

• A federal court approved a preliminary injunction forbidding three poultry companies in California from violating a range of child labor and wage laws after an investigation uncovered workers under the age of 16 were using sharp knives to debone and cut chicken.
• An amended preliminary injunction, filed Oct. 26, prohibits Tony Elvis Bran and four other associates who operate a single enterprise comprising The Exclusive Poultry, Inc., Valtierra Poultry LLC and Meza Poultry LLC, from violating child labor regulations, harassing labor investigators and from retaliating against employees. It also prevents the shipment of any “hot goods” processed over the past 30 days where child labor was used or handled by workers not paid overtime.
• The action comes months after the U.S. Department of Labor brought claims against the defendants and the Biden administration took steps to crack down on an uptick in child labor. Counsel representing Bran declined to immediately respond to a request for comment.

Dive Insight:

Since 2020, the number of children being employed illegally by companies has doubled to 5,792, according to Labor Department data, with more than 900 companies investigated this fiscal year.

The investigation into Exclusive, Valtierra and Meza poultry facilities found that employers directed workers under the age of 18 to use sharp knives to debone and cut poultry. The company also directed minors to work longer and at times not permitted by law, as well as...

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