DOL Fines Florida Skating Rinks for Illegal Employment of Minors
Five skating centers in Florida face penalties totaling $26,103.
- By Robert Yaniz Jr.
- Aug 23, 2023
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has imposed fines on five Florida skating rinks after determining they illegally employed minors outside the legally allowed hours.
In a release dated August 21, DOL announced investigators found the employers permitted 33 underage employees, ages 14 and 15, to work outside the hours permitted by the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. These businesses include Astro Skating Center locations in Brandon, Ormond Beach, Tarpon Springs and Bradenton as well as Astro Skate Family Fun Center in Pinellas Park. The DOL cited these locations with $26,103 in penalties.
By law, minors aren’t permitted to work past 7 p.m. during school days, after 9 p.m. from June 1 to Labor Day, for over three hours on school days, more than eight hours on days without school and over 18 hours in a school week. Furthermore, the employers were cited for failing to maintain precise records of the ages of these minor employees.
“Federal law requires employers must balance their needs with their obligations to provide young workers with useful work experiences without jeopardizing their well-being or schooling opportunities,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Nicolas Ratmiroff in Tampa, Florida, said in a statement. “We encourage employers, parents, educators and young workers to use the variety of resources we provide to help understand their obligations and rights under the law.”
Historically, from fiscal years 2020 to 2022, the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division penalized employers over $2.8 million across multiple states in the region, resulting from over 500 child labor investigations impacting nearly 2,900 minors.
About the Author
Robert Yaniz Jr. is the Content Editor of Occupational Health & Safety.