Indiana man allegedly misused kids to sell candy in KY. State levies $45,000 in fines.
Kentucky is trying to collect $45,000 in fines from an Indiana man accused of using underage workers to sell candy in Bowling Green.
The man, Shawn Floyd, also faces 12 felony charges of human trafficking.
Floyd, 55, of Indianapolis, was initially charged with a dozen misdemeanor counts of endangering minors in the summer of 2019, but a grand jury returned the more serious charges.
According to court allegations and the state attorney general’s office, Floyd brought 12 children to Kentucky with him in July 2019 to sell candy door-to-door.
Floyd made the juveniles share a motel room with three adults and pay for their own meals and water, state investigators said at the time.
Floyd has pleaded not guilty to the human-trafficking charges.
Last week, the Kentucky Labor Cabinet filed a lawsuit against him alleging he has not paid $45,000 in fines that regulators levied against him last August for alleged labor violations involving the children.
Citations in the case say that Floyd worked people under the age of 14, which is illegal in Kentucky outside certain school-sponsored programs; had them work more hours than allowed; had them work later in the day than allowed; didn’t give them required breaks; and paid some less than minimum wage.
Seven of the dozen kids Floyd brought to Kentucky were under age 14, the complaint says.
A 10-year-old identified by the initials G.D. worked until 10:30 p.m. one night and also worked 12 hours in a day, according to the complaint.
Floyd paid one 12-year-old $3.50 an hour, far below the $7.25 minimum wage, and paid one 13-year-old only $2.08 an hour, the lawsuit alleges.
The Labor Cabinet served Floyd with the lawsuit during his arraignment on the human-trafficking charges Feb. 24, according to a news release.
“The Kentucky Labor Cabinet takes all violations of the commonwealth’s child labor laws seriously, and intends to vigorously enforce violations we find,” Secretary Larry L. Roberts said in the release. “The violations in the Floyd complaint are particularly egregious, and we intend to pursue the complaint with all of the resources at our disposal.”
The attorney general’s office said last year that it was investigating possible violations by Floyd in other Kentucky counties, including Fayette and Jessamine, but he has only been charged in Warren County.
This story was originally published February 28, 2020 at 8:57 AM.
