DOL fines window-cleaning company $29K over child labor violations

A Grand Rapids, Michigan, window cleaning and holiday lights installation company must pay $29,210 in civil penalties for employing three children to complete dangerous tasks, including one in which a child suffered serious injuries requiring surgery when they fell from a roof, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Tuesday.

The penalty, included in consent findings approved by the DOL’s Office of the Administrative Law Judge on Oct. 30, resolves alleged child labor violations by Absolutely Clean Services Inc. following an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division, which enforces child-labor code.

In addition to the fall-protection lapse, investigators determined the company, which has already paid $14,605 of the fine, allowed two children to operate a motor vehicle with a gross weight over 6,000 pounds and failed to maintain accurate employee records, including the birth date of at least one child.