Tyson Foods under investigation by Department of Labor over child labor claims
FILE-Tyson Foods frozen chicken products sit in a refrigerated section of a store on August 08, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Tyson Foods is facing an investigation over claims that it employed underaged children at its processing plants.
The Houston District Office for the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor is conducting a probe of the poultry processing company after court documents in the Western District of Arkansas showed allegations of child labor at Tyson processing plants.
Court documents obtained by KFSM-TV in Arkansas found that applications for inspection warrants were filed in September 2024 claiming that minors are employed at the Tyson Foods Rogers and Tyson Foods Green Forest plants in Arkansas.
RELATED: McDonald’s franchise had minors working deep fryers, Labor Department finds
A review of the processing plants started in June 2024 after anonymous complaints were received by the Houston District Office for the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor.
The warrants were used to search for records of minors working at the plants and to collect information related to workers for Tyson Foods or affiliates and contractors of Tyson Foods.
In an inspection application for the Tyson Food Rogers plant, a teacher at an Arkansas school provided an anonymous tip to the Wage and Hour Division informing the agency that one of her 14-year-old students talked about working at the Tyson plant with his mom during the summer.
And in another application for the Tyson Foods Green Forest plant, KFSM-TV reported that a mother of middle schoolers overheard kids between 11 and 13 years old discussing working at the Green Forest plant on the night shift, with those hours running from 11 p.m. to 7 or 8 a.m.
The kids allegedly were heard discussing their inability to withdraw money from their paycheck using an ATM, KFSM-TV noted, citing court documents.
RELATED: Crumbl Cookies violated child labor laws in 6 states, feds say
In July 2024, investigators were assigned to conduct observations at the Tyson Foods Rogers and Tyson Foods Green Forest plants, and it was determined that there were minor employees under the age of 16 with one investigator documenting that the children were working in possibly dangerous conditions.
Tyson Foods provided a statement to KFSM-TV in response to the allegations, with the company telling the news outlet in part that Tyson does not allow employment of underaged workers, and they do not participate in the use of child labor.