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'It's scary. It's dangerous' | U.S. leaders strengthening child labor laws after Louisville McDonald's restaurants found in violation

Congressman Morgan McGarvey introduced a bill to crack down on violators.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — U.S. leaders are strengthening child labor laws after Louisville McDonald's restaurants were found in violation. 

Congressman Morgan McGarvey introduced a bill to crack down on violators. McGarvey said the Workers Power Act sparked from a federal investigation in May, where several Louisville McDonald's violated child labor laws -- including one on Taylor Boulevard in downtown.

The disturbing video from August 2022 shows the moment a couple found two children preparing orders after midnight at the drive through on Taylor Boulevard. The kids' faces are blurred to protect their identities, but customer Nathan Pitts said they looked as young as 10 years old. 

"Those kids shouldn't have been behind that counter at all," Pitts said. 

After a months-long investigation, the Department of Labor (DOL) discovered the children were employed by the McDonald's franchise and sometimes worked as late as 2 a.m.

Investigators also uncovered a total of 305 child labor violations at locations across Kentuckiana, Maryland and Ohio.

"That's completely unacceptable, and it took the news media breaking a story in order for the Department of Labor to conduct an investigation," McGarvey said. "It's because they're so under resourced and understaffed."

RELATED: Three Louisville McDonald's locations fined for violating child labor laws

This is why McGarvey said he introduced the Workers Power Act. The bill seeks to provide the labor department with resources needed to crack down on violations. That includes workplace health and safety hazards, wage theft, and child labor.

"First and foremost, I'm a parent. To see 10 year old's working the fryer at 2 o'clock in the morning -- it's scary. It's dangerous. It's why we have these laws to prevent that from happening in the first place. But if we don't have the enforcement behind it to make sure those laws are protecting our kids, then these unsafe working conditions are able to continue," McGarvey said.

RELATED: McDonald's new adult Happy Meals brings back iconic toy after 25 years

To ensure they don't, the legislation will promote reports on the DOL's needs, incentivize recruitment and retention, and create a grant to increase enforcement throughout states. 

As of right now, McGarvey said the bill has 36 cosponsors and he hopes to move it to committee soon. In the meantime, he said the community can help. 

"If you see something that looks dangerous, report it. Don't assume somebody knows what's going on who can do something about it," McGarvey said. "Ultimately we want to make sure the Department of Labor has the resources so this can't happen, but it's up to all of us to do our part."

The McDonald's franchises were issued more than $200,000 in fines as a result of the labor law violations. 

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