A February 2023 New York Times feature article included a quote from Stranch, Jennings & Garvey (SJ&G) attorney Karla Campbell. The article, titled “Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S.,” was written by Hannah Dreier, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter with The New York Times.
The article addresses the widespread labor exploitation practices among numerous U.S. industries of employing unaccompanied migrant children and teenagers in low-income, labor-intensive full-time jobs. A number of companies that are household names in the U.S. directly or indirectly utilize this practice, which is in violation of longstanding child labor laws.
Many of these minors work 12-hour shifts after attending school all day. A significant percentage have dropped out of school altogether because of the heavy burden of earning an income to help support their families abroad, primarily in Central America.
Campbell worked with Ms. Dreier for nearly a year to identify individual cases of child labor in Tennessee and share her experiences through past cases she has litigated in the past, as well as current cases. She practices in labor and employment law and actively advocates for employee rights. She also practices in ERISA, civil litigation and appellate law.