Retail confectionary chain Candyopolis was recently ordered to pay $12,000 in civil penalties and $6,700 in back wages for labor rights violations. The U.S. Department of Labor found that the Midwest chain was allowing teenage workers to perform hazardous duties, was not meeting the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) recordkeeping provisions and failed to pay workers for overtime employee attendance.

Seven stores across Kansas and Oklahoma were violating the FLSA's child labor protection standards by allowing workers who were minors to operate trash and box compactors. By law, employees must be 18 years or older to perform these tasks.

The investigation uncovered minimum wage violations in 13 stores and instances of unpaid overtime in 11 stores. As a result, employers were ordered to pay $2,048 in back wages to 256 employees who were forced to pay $8 from their first paycheck, which brought their earning below $7.25 per hour. The investigation also found that some employers were misclassifying managers under exemptions they didn't qualify for to avoid paying them time-and-a-half for overtime. The 19 managers are expected to receive $4,689.40 in back wages.

Employers can avoid expensive lawsuits and violations by adhering to the FLSA's provisions and regularly auditing payroll practices. 

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