Hyundai Alabama child labor allegations lead to class action lawsuit

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A class action lawsuit against Hyundai has been filed in California following reports that the Korean automaker used child labor at a parts supplier in Alabama.

The federal suit, filed Thursday in Californias Central District, came a little more than a week after Reuters reported that children as young as 12 have been recently employed at SMART Alabama in Luverne.

SMART Alabama has supplied parts for Hyundais Montgomery plant since 2003.

The 32-page lawsuit was filed by a California woman, Lea Reis, on behalf of current and former owners and lessees of Hyundai vehicles, claiming they were harmed by the use of child labor on their vehicles.

Reis owned a 2012 Hyundai Sonata, the suit claims, and would not have purchased this vehicle had she known child labor was involved.

Both Hyundai and SMART Alabama have denied the Reuters storys allegations, Hyundai telling The Wall Street Journal that there is no evidence that there is any truth to the report.

The US Department of Labor and and the Alabama Department of Labor are investigating the story.

Alabama Child Labor Law prevents minors under the age of 16 from working in a manufacturing environment.

That the child labor is utilized in Defendants supply chain for the manufacture of Class Vehicles is material to consumers not wishing to support such labor with their purchasing power, the lawsuit states.

In the course of marketing and selling Class Vehicles, however, Defendants materially omit and fail to disclose that Class Vehicles are manufactured using child labor.

The lawsuit says use of child labor violates several California laws, including its unfair competition and false advertising statutes, and the Consumer Legal Remedies Act.

Attempts to contact Hyundai for a comment were not immediately successful.

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