SAN ANTONIO – A federal investigation revealed the operators of three La Panadería Bakery Café locations in San Antonio violated child labor provisions as well as minimum wage and overtime pay requirements.
The U.S. Department of Labor said in a news release that its Wage and Hour Division investigated the pay practices of three businesses: Tequila Almond Croissant, LLC, Pan Dulce, LLC and SA Bakery Co., LLC — which all do business as La Panadería at the following three locations:
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301 East Houston Street
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17030 Fiesta Texas Drive
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8305 Broadway
According to the release, the employers violated child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act after employing a 13-year-old and allowing a 15-year-old to work overnight. Overnight work is prohibited for 14 and 15-year-olds, the agency said.
The department issued a $25,706 penalty for the child labor violations, the release states.
The investigation also uncovered minimum wage violations after the employers apparently failed to pay a worker for two overnight shifts at the La Cantera location on Fiesta Texas Drive.
The employers are also accused of failing to combine hours for employees who worked at multiple bakery locations and paying the employees straight-time rates instead of the required time-and-one-half overtime rates.
In total, the U.S. Department of Labor said La Panadería paid $45,000 in back wages and penalties.
A spokesperson for the restaurant sent a statement to KSAT Tuesday afternoon.
At La Panadería, we take our responsibility as an employer seriously and are committed to providing a workplace that complies with all applicable labor laws while supporting the well-being of every member of our team. The U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement relates to matters from 2024. While the announcement was issued this week, the underlying issues have already been resolved.
The allegations of child labor law violations were investigated and found to be the result of circumstances outside of management’s knowledge. The minors referenced in the Department of Labor’s violations were two minors accompanying their parents to work without leadership’s knowledge or approval. We do not hire minors under the legal working age, and the two minors identified were not on our payroll.
La Panadería has taken meaningful steps to strengthen our organization by working with experienced labor and human resources consultants and enhancing our internal policies, training, and compliance practices. We continue to provide meaningful careers to our workforce in excess of the standards set by law.
As a business rooted in our community, our employees are at the center of everything we do. We will continue learning, improving, and working every day to better serve our employees, customers, and community.
La Panadería
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