Restaurant Chain Accused of Violating Child Labor Laws

The federal Department of Labor has filed suit charging that the company that operates 23 Roy Rogers Restaurant franchises violated child labor laws, officials said today.

The lawsuit charges that Stamford, Conn.-based Eastern Hospitality Inc. has violated provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standard Act since 1986 by employing 14- and 15-year-olds to work more than the hours permitted under federal law and has illegally hired workers, ages 14 through 17, to operate and clean power-driven meat-slicing machines.

Secretary of Labor Elizabeth Hanford Dole, the plaintiff on behalf of the Labor Department, is seeking a court injunction to halt the alleged violations and to secure back overtime pay for 134 workers, court papers said.