Owners of Korean mall shops cited for labor violations
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Sep. 22—The owners of three specialty Korean food stores in the Northshore Mall in Peabody and Burlington Mall were assessed more than $51,000 in penalties for violating child labor and wage and hour violations, Attorney General Maura Healey's office announced Thursday.
The business, Peabody Losoon Park, Inc., doing business as Losoon Park, and its owners Losoon Park and Mili "Terry" Kim were issued nine citations for various labor violations including failure to pay wages, pay minimum wage and overtime, furnish and keep true and accurate payroll records, issue a suitable paystub, provide earned sick time, obtain a valid work permit for teenage employees, and for the employment of a minor past 8 p.m. without supervision.
The shops sell imported Korean candy and snacks, beverages and toiletry items.
The Attorney General's office received a complaint from a driver for the company who reported not being paid for all hours worked or overtime. Investigators asked for the company's payroll, but say Losoon Park had not turned over all records, including payroll and time records. That forced investigators to rely on employee testimony to find the violations.
The Fair Labor Division concluded that Losoon Park frequently failed to pay employees for hours worked, failed to offer earned sick leave pay, and did not provide suitable paystubs. The investigation also revealed that at least two teenagers worked past 8 p.m. without supervision and that neither had been asked for a work permit before starting their employment.
The Attorney General's office encourages workers who believe that their rights are being violated to file a complaint at mass.gov/ago/fairlabor or call the Fair Labor Hotline at 617-727-3465.
Courts reporter Julie Manganis can be reached at 978-338-2521, by email at jmanganis@salemnews.com or on Twitter at @SNJulieManganis
Courts reporter Julie Manganis can be reached at 978-338-2521, by email at jmanganis@salemnews.com or on Twitter at @SNJulieManganis
