(Bloomberg) -- US pork producer Smithfield Foods Inc. said it reached an agreement with Minnesota authorities over disputed child labor allegations.
The maker of Farmland bacon and Farmer John sausages was accused by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry of employing 11 underage workers at its St. James facility at some point between 2021 and 2023, the company said in a statement.
While Smithfield denied that it knowingly hired anyone under the age of 18, it decided to settle the dispute “in the interest of preventing the distraction of prolonged litigation.” The company agreed to pay a $2 million administrative penalty, the largest penalty DLI has recovered in a child labor enforcement action, the agency said in a separate statement.
The case is the latest in a series of alleged violations by major US meat producers, which have for years struggled to fill their plants amid worker shortages. Child labor became a political issue last year after a Labor Department investigation and media reports on the scope of the problem.
Each of the 11 alleged underage workers hired by the St. James facility used false identification, said Smithfield, which is controlled by Chinese meat giant WH Group Ltd. While the company screens all hires through a federal system that validates employment eligibility of US citizens and non-citizens, the system doesn’t prevent identity theft or document fraud, it added.
“We wholeheartedly agree that individuals under the age of 18 have no place working in meatpacking or processing facilities,” Smithfield said. Suppliers, including third-party sanitation service providers, are also required not to hire underage workers, it added.
(Updates with details throughout)
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.