U.S. Department of Labor sues Hyundai and its suppliers in Alabama over child employment allegations

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Labor wants a federal judge to block Hyundai and two other Alabama companies from engaging in what the government considers illegal child labor.

The complaint filed Thursday follows an investigation by the department's Wage and Hour Division that found a 13-year-old worked between 50 and 60 hours a week operating machines on an assembly line that transformed sheet metal into automobile body parts.

The defendants include Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama LLC, SMART Alabama LLC, and Best Practice Service, LLC. The lawsuit says it aims to end the use of child labor and require companies to give up profits from the alleged practice.

Hyundai said in a statement that it was cooperating fully with the Labor Ministry and that it was unfair to be held responsible for the practices of its suppliers.

“We are reviewing the new lawsuit and intend to vigorously defend the company,” the statement said.

A representative for Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama LLC released this statement to Action 8 News:

“The use of child labor and violation of any labor laws is not consistent with the standards and values ​​we uphold as a company. We worked for several months to thoroughly investigate this issue and took immediate and thorough corrective action. We presented all of this information to the U.S. Department of Labor in an effort to resolve the issue, while detailing why no legal basis existed to impose liability in these circumstances. Unfortunately, the Department of Labor is seeking to apply an unprecedented legal theory that would unfairly hold Hyundai responsible for the actions of its suppliers and set a worrying precedent for other automakers and manufacturers. We are reviewing the new lawsuit and intend to vigorously defend the company.

Hyundai facilities, including Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA), are committed to ensuring that all of our own facilities are in full compliance with local, state and federal laws. We have implemented rigorous policies and procedures to maintain compliance with applicable laws and high standards of ethical conduct.

After becoming aware of the suppliers' alleged violations, we took immediate action. At our request, the affected providers terminated their relationships with third-party staffing agencies, even though those agencies had certified that they had screened and authorized the individuals as adults. Additionally, we conducted a broader survey and review of our U.S. supplier network.

We have implemented new, stricter labor standards throughout our supply chain as a result of the investigation. We have required our Alabama suppliers to conduct independently verified audits of their operations and implement all recommended actions. This intervention will allow them to better identify and resolve issues while continuing to provide jobs that support local communities. Additional and in-depth audits will be deployed as necessary to ensure best practices and recommendations are followed. We also introduced a compliance training program in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Labor for suppliers on a variety of employment-related topics.

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