A federal court in Greeneville, Tennessee, on Monday ordered a staffing agency to stop illegally placing children in dangerous jobs.
The Department of Labor, which announced the consent judgment, said federal investigators had discovered “oppressive child labor at a Morristown (Tennessee) manufacturing facility that produces outdoor power equipment for major companies including John Deere, Toro and Yamaha.”
The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division had found that Professional Personnel Service Inc., operating as Luttrell Staffing in Kingsport, Tennessee, employed children to work at Tuff Torq in violation of child labor laws.
Luttrell Staffing was ordered to comply with federal child labor laws and to pay $121,572 in civil penalties.
The consent judgment orders the company to, among other things, hire a third-party compliance specialist, submit regular reports to the Wage and Hour Division, and establish a toll-free number that allows employees to report violations anonymously.
Luttrell Staffing provides employers with workers at locations in California, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Vermont and Virginia.