HARVEY COUNTY — For many teens, working at a fast-food restaurant is a first job. For 50 teens – ages 14 and 15 – working at three Sonic drive-in locations in central Kansas – that meant being employed in excess of the number of hours allowed by child labor laws and during nighttime hours not permitted by law, according to a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.
The labor department’s Wage and Hour Division found BBR Investments LLC based in Newton, owner of 17 Sonic locations in Kansas, permitted minors at the three of its restaurants to consistently work more than 3 hours on a school day, more than 18 hours in a school week, and more than 8 hours on a non-school day. The employer also allowed them to work later than 7 p.m. during the school year, and later than 9 p.m. from June 1st through Labor Day. All of these employment practices violate child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
The division assessed $41,998 in civil money penalties for violations at the drive-in locations in Newton, Hutchinson, and McPherson.
“Federal child labor laws allow for youth employment but specify when and how long these young people can work, and what hazardous occupations must be avoided so their safety and well-being are never compromised,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Reed Trone in Kansas City, Missouri. “BBR Investments could have avoided costly penalties by making sure they followed the law.”
The division found violations at the following Sonic locations:
