Child as young as 11 operating forklift at Ohio border warehouse, federal investigation underway

A warehouse in Hebron, Kentucky, near the Ohio border, has been ordered by a federal court to cease illegally employing children and violating federal child labor laws. The company, Win.IT America, is accused of employing an 11-year-old and a 13-year-old at its distribution center, with one of the children operating a forklift, a hazardous occupation for workers under 18. The court has imposed civil money penalties of over $30,000 on the company and mandated compliance training for management. Child labor violations have been on the rise, with the Department of Labor reporting a more than 60% increase in violations over the past five years.