On Thursday, allegations of kid labor, inappropriate habits, and a hostile atmosphere shut down a Popeyes fried-chicken franchise in Oakland, California. The complaints have been filed Wednesday with CalOSHA and the California Labor Commissioner by two 17-year-olds who allege {that a} coworker began working on the restaurant when she was simply 13, within the seventh grade, and has been clocking in 40 to 45 hours every week, together with late nights on college days. Allegations additionally embrace that lewd, sexually suggestive feedback have been made to feminine teen workers.
California’s child-labor legislation bans employment of youngsters 12 and 13 at any time on college days, or having them work greater than 40 hours per week, and they aren’t to work previous 7 p.m., or after 9 p.m. June 1 by way of Labor Day. The woman who allegedly began on the Popeyes at age 13 stayed on the identical schedule when she was 14, additionally a labor-law violation, the grievance claimed.
The Oakland Popeyes workers additionally made disturbing allegations concerning the habits of their safety workers, together with using pepper spray and threats of violence. Popeyes has acknowledged they’re investigating these allegations and can take obligatory actions in opposition to any confirmed violation. In the meantime, the accused franchise homeowners, Mohammad Noor and Sedig Joe Amin of 14th Road Rooster Company, haven’t commented on the matter.
The teenagers additionally alleged that the restaurant’s safety guards have been too poorly educated to correctly handle conflicts within the restaurant.
“Two weeks in the past certainly one of our safety guards threatened to kill a buyer who entered the shop…I do know he pepper sprayed two individuals simply final month.
“At some point whereas I used to be working he pepper sprayed an unhoused lady who was refusing to depart and I watched her run out masking her face. One other day after I arrived to select up my test there have been ambulances round as a result of he had pepper sprayed another person.”
