Labor Code Violations

An audit by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. of about 25,000 employees uncovered thousands of labor violations, including minors working during school hours and workers not taking breaks or lunches. The audit of 25,000 employees performed by Wal-Mart in July 2000 detailed 1,371 violations of child-labor laws, including minors working too late, too many hours in a day or during school hours.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Monday that California labor officials are investigating the company's alleged failures to comply with state wage and hour laws. The disclosure in Wal-Mart's quarterly report to the Securities and Exchange Commission did not specify the nature of the alleged violations. However, a company spokeswoman said the California Department of Labor Standards and Enforcement is reviewing Wal-Mart's compliance with meal break requirements.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. managers in Oregon violated state and federal wage laws by forcing employees of the world's largest retailer to work unpaid hours to avoid overtime, an Oregon jury concluded Thursday. A federal court jury in Portland found that the company engaged in a pattern of prodding managers to hold down costs by using off-the-clock work to ensure tasks were completed. More than 400 Oregon Wal-Mart employees are seeking damages as part of the class-action lawsuit.

Seven years after 71 Thai workers were freed from virtual slavery in an El Monte sweatshop, they now have permission to live permanently in the United States. The workers, who were allowed to remain here after trial proceedings on special visas provided to witnesses whose testimony could endanger their lives, were notified by the Immigration and Naturalization Service of their new legal status -- much-awaited news that made some shout for joy.

The Los Angeles County district attorney's office has filed tax fraud and grand theft charges against three Palmdale janitorial companies and their top officials for underpaying workers and failing to pay taxes and unemployment insurance. The companies failed to pay at least $900,000 in taxes and insurance premiums to the state, prosecutors said. They said the alleged fraud went back as far as 1997.

The job ended the way many do for day laborers: An employer failed to pay three men for their work. But unlike most such incidents, this one took a twist no one expected. The laborers, in a highly unusual step, went to Garden Grove police, who tracked down the contractor. The officers assigned to the case continue to work on getting the men their lost wages.

A workers' advocacy group filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court Thursday against the popular teen clothing retailer Forever 21 Inc., alleging it engaged in unfair labor practices by systematically contracting work out to sweatshops. The lawsuit by the Asian Pacific American Legal Center named 19 workers who allegedly sewed, ironed or packed Forever 21 clothing six days a week, sometimes 12 hours a day, for far less than the minimum wage.

Thirteen-year-old Margarita Parra was looking to earn some spending money, and the flier she spotted on a fence in her South-Central Los Angeles neighborhood seemed to offer a fun way: "TEEN JOBS. EARN UP TO $125 A WEEK AND MORE. PLUS! WIN PRIZES, CASH BONUSES AND TRIPS TO MAGIC MOUNTAIN, UNIVERSAL STUDIOS, KNOTTS . . . ALL TRANSPORTATION PROVIDED." She called the number and two days later a van belonging to a group called Tomorrow's Future picked her up.

State officials have fined Sony Pictures $58,805 for five workplace violations related to the death in March of a crew member on the Downey set of the feature film "Spider-Man," a spokesman for Cal/OSHA said Wednesday. Among the citations issued by the agency are two $25,000 fines for modifying a forklift without the manufacturer's approval and without consideration for load capacity. The company has 15 days to appeal. Susan Tick, a Sony spokeswoman, would not comment on a possible appeal.

A Laguna Hills contractor hired to make pink tiaras and magic wands for Walt Disney Co. is being investigated for allegedly allowing Orange County women to work from home for less than minimum wage. The contractor, KTBA Inc., hired 30 to 70 women over the last month to assemble the trinkets at their homes for 60 cents apiece.