East Bay Crumbl Cookies Franchises Accused Of Child Labor Violations

CONCORD, CA — A Concord Crumbl Cookies franchise was fined $3,597 for child labor violations, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced Tuesday. The Concord store was one of 11 franchise locations in six states, including three East Bay stores, accused of child labor violations — with the San Ramon store hit with the heaviest fine in the region.

The labor department said in a news release that the 11 operators allowed young employees —many as young as 14 or 15 years old — to work more than the law permits, or in hazardous or prohibited occupations.

Fourteen- and 15-year-olds cannot work more than 8 hours a day or exceed 40 hours per week. All workers younger than 18 are banned from working jobs the labor department deems “hazardous,” which includes driving vehicles on public roads and using power-driven bakery machines.

The labor department issued a total of $57,854 for the violations, though it did not specify the exact nature of them. Walnut Creek Cookies, LLC, a Concord-based Crumbl Cookie franchisee at 2015 Diamond Blvd. that offers delivery and carryout service, was fined $3,597 for violations affecting three minor employees.

Two other East Bay locations were cited:

• Brentwood, 6 minor employees, $7,453 fine
• San Ramon, 9 minor employees, $15,417 fine

“Employers must ensure that part-time employment does not jeopardize the safety or education of young workers,” Wage and Hour Division Regional Administrator Betty Campbell in Dallas said in a news release. “It is the responsibility of every employer who hires minor workers to understand child labor laws, and comply with them or potentially face costly consequences.”

Crumbl, the Utah-based franchise with nearly 700 locations around the country, told Fox TV stations that it is “deeply disappointed” with the findings and is looking into them.

“At Crumbl, we are committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming work environment for all of our franchisees and their employees. We take any violation of federal labor laws very seriously. We were deeply disappointed to learn that a small number of our franchised locations were found to be in violation of these laws.

“We are actively working to understand what has occurred at these specific store locations and will take appropriate action to ensure that all of our franchisees are fully compliant with the law. We apologize to any of our franchisees’ employees who may have been affected by this situation and want to assure the public that we are committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity and compliance at every Crumbl location.”

Locations in Minnesota, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Utah and Washington were also cited. See here for the full list.