Labor Rights News Thread

[weatheriscool]

Tennessee company fined nearly $650K for illegally hiring minors to clean slaughterhouses

Source: USA Today

Published 10:53 p.m. ET May 6, 2024

A Tennessee-based cleaning company has agreed to pay nearly $650,000 in civil penalties after federal investigators found the company employed at least 24 children at two slaughtering and meat packing facilities, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Monday.

A federal court in Iowa approved a consent order and judgment Monday with Fayette Janitorial Service LLC, which requires the company to pay $649,304 in civil penalties, the Labor Department said in a news release. The company must also hire a third-party to implement company policies to prevent the illegal employment of children and create a program for reporting concerns about child labor violations.

The Labor Department obtained a preliminary injunction against Fayette Janitorial in late February after an investigation discovered that the company employed at least 24 children, including children as young as 13 years old, on overnight sanitation shifts at two slaughtering and meat packing facilities in Sioux City, Iowa, and Accomac, Virginia.

Under U.S. law, children under the age 18 are prohibited from being employed in dangerous occupations such as meat and poultry slaughtering, processing, rendering and packing operations. According to the Labor Department, Fayette Janitorial had minors "clean dangerous kill floor equipment such as head splitters, jaw pullers, meat bandsaws, and neck clippers."

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nat ... 593416007/

[caltrek]

'We'll Be Back,' Says UAW Chief Shawn Fain After 'Tough Loss' in Alabama
by Jessica Corbett
May 7, 2024

Introduction:

(Common Dreams) Workers at a pair of Mercedes-Benz plants near Tuscaloosa, Alabama narrowly voted against joining the United Auto Workers this week, according to a preliminary tally on Friday.

As of press time, the UAW webpage had the National Labor Relations Board tally at 2,045 in favor of joining the union (45%) and 2,642 opposed (56%).

Voting at the large facility in Vance and the battery plant in Woodstock kicked off Monday and wrapped up Friday morning. Speaking to reporters Friday evening, UAW president Shawn Fain said that it was "obviously not the result we wanted" but "we'll be back in Vance."

"These courageous workers reached out to us because they wanted justice," Fain said of the Mercedes employees. "They led us. They led this fight, and that's what this is all about—and what happens next is up to them."

"Justice isn't just about one vote or one campaign, it's about getting a voice and getting your fair share," he continued, noting that "workers won serious gains in this campaign."

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/news/uaw-alabama