Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 6, 1990 TAG: 9004060290
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY BUSINESS EDITOR
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Taco Bell in Salem was fined $2,650 for five violations involving injury and four instances of a 15-year-old who worked at a job not permitted under labor laws.
The Chick-Fil-A at Valley View Mall was fined $1,600 on 10 violations of working hours for 14- and 15-year-olds.
The Western Sizzlin on Orange Avenue was fined $950 on six violations of hours worked by 14- and 15-year-olds.
Alan Giles, manager of Chick-Fil-A, and Sandra Wise, an owner of Western Sizzlin, said their violations stem from a discrepancy between state and federal regulations on weekend work for teen-agers.
State work permits allow youths 14 and 15 years old to work as late as 9 p.m. when they have no school the next day, Giles said. All of his violations were for youths who worked from 7 to 9 p.m. on Fridays.
As a result, Giles said, he cannot afford to employ these teens and he has stopped the practice. A second offense carries a fine of $10,000 and six months in jail, he said. The fine "will hurt me financially," he said.
"Something needs to be looked at . . . The kid who wants to work is being punished," Giles said. He plans to take his complaint to 6th District Rep. James Olin later this spring.
"To be grouped with misuse of child labor laws is not right," Giles said. His company gives scholarships and his restaurant has been recognized by local school systems, he said.
When state and federal laws differ, Giles said, the differences should be clarified for employers.
Wise said she had "confusion between the state and federal laws." She said the violations are minor.
Paul Shively of Martinsville, an owner of the Taco Bell, said his company, Tacoma Inc., "as a responsible company, complies with state, federal and local laws and regulations."
His company has policies, systems and procedures in place, including a system of self-audits, "to ensure that we comply, but you must realize that nothing is fail-safe."
It is not illegal to hire 15-year-olds, he said, but "it is unfortunate that this happened to us and a lot of other folks."
Shively said the injury at his restaurant occurred when a 15-year-old slipped and fell, receiving a bruise and a sprain. If it had happened on a football field, the situation would have been different, he said.
***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on April 7, 1990\ Clarification
A U.S. Labor Department fine for violations of federal child labor laws was imposed on Taco Bell restaurants in Salem and Madison Heights, near Lynchburg. A story in Friday morning's paper listed only the Salem restaurant because of incomplete information supplied by the Labor Department.
Memo: Correction