A cleaning company has been busted for alleged "oppressive child labor" after making nearly a dozen kids work illegal night shifts at an Iowa pork factory, marking the second time underage workers have been discovered at the factory.
Qvest LLC, a sanitation company, reportedly employed 11 kids to "use corrosive cleaners to clean head splitters, jaw pullers, bandsaws, neck clippers and other equipment at the Seaboard Triumph Foods facility from at least September 2019 through September 2023," according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Because of the dangerous working environment, all individuals under the age of 18 are barred from working in meat processing and packing facilities.
An Iowa court ordered Qvest to pay more than $170,000 in child labor penalties. The company was also ordered to hire a third-party to review hirings to ensure that they do not violate child labor laws, and to establish a system so others can report concerns.
This is the second time this year that children were discovered working at the Iowa plant after Fayette Janitorial Services LLC employed 24 children to work at the plant, as well as at Perdue Farms facility in Virginia, the U.S. Department of Labor previously reported.
"At the Seaboard Triumph facility, federal investigators witnessed children concealing their faces and carrying glittered school backpacks before starting their overnight shift and learned children were assigned on overnight shifts to use corrosive cleaners to clean dangerous kill floor equipment, including head splitters, jaw pullers, bandsaws and neck clippers," the department said in a May statement.
Fayette Janitorial Services LLC was ordered to pay almost $650,000 in penalties and was also told to hire a third-party consultant. Both companies have since ended their contracts with the cleaning company.
In regards to the recent incident with Qvest, Seaboard Triumph Foods said in a statement to NBC News that it "had no evidence that under [age] individuals accessed the plant," and did not approve of Qvest's employment of minors to work at the facility.
Qvest did not return NBC News or CBS News' requests for comment.
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