Restaurant Runner Inc., with offices in Santa Clarita and Bakersfield, California,
has paid $15,200 in civil money penalties to settle charges that the company
employed 18 minors in hazardous occupations prohibited by federal child labor
laws.
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Download NowRestaurant Runner contracts with restaurants to deliver prepared meals to customers'
homes. The Department of Labor says its investigation revealed that the firm
allowed minors under the age of 18 to work as delivery drivers. One young driver
was injured in a car accident while working for the company, according to investigators.
The youth employment provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act list 17 hazardous
jobs, which workers under the age of 18 may not perform. Examples include mining,
meatpacking or processing, using power-driven bakery machines or paper product
machines, roofing, and excavation operations. With few exceptions, work that
involves driving is prohibited, the department notes.
The investigation of Restaurant Runner Inc. covered the two-year period ending
in February 2000. All penalties have been paid and the firm has agreed to future
compliance.
The department has created a website designed to help people understand the
federal and state laws regarding the hours young people can work and the type
of jobs they can perform. The website is located at www.youthrules.dol.gov.