Two North Georgia Culver’s fined $60K for child labor violations

Written by: A. Smith

Published September 19, 2025 @ 10:40 AM ET

FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. – The operators of two Culver’s restaurants in North Georgia have agreed to pay more than $60,000 in penalties after federal investigators said dozens of underage employees were allowed to work illegal hours and perform hazardous tasks.

According to court documents, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found 79 violations involving minors at the Culver’s on Peachtree Parkway in Forsyth County and the Culver’s on Center Lane in Dawsonville between June 2021 and June 2023.

At the Forsyth County location in Suwanee, investigators said 73 employees under 16 worked past permitted hours, and three underage workers were allowed to use a manual fryer, which is considered hazardous for minors. Three additional minors were found working prohibited hours at the Dawsonville restaurant.

Federal child labor laws restrict 14- and 15-year-olds from working later than 7 p.m. during the school year and 9 p.m. in the summer. They are also limited to eight hours a day and no more than 40 hours a week when school is out.

Under a consent decree filed in federal court this month, the restaurants’ operators, Adabi Investment LLC and Adabi’s Diner LLC, were ordered to pay a $60,116 civil fine and comply with stricter hiring and training rules moving forward. The decree requires the restaurants to label hazardous equipment, train 14- and 15-year-olds on child labor laws, and keep updated emergency contact and school information for employees under 19.

Culver’s corporate office said in a statement that franchisees are trained on labor regulations and required to follow them. The company said the violations occurred between 2021 and 2023, but that the franchisee “swiftly and successfully corrected all conditions reported in the corresponding Labor Department audit and committed to complying with those conditions moving forward.”