Employer: C Casa Napa LLC, operating as C Casa Restaurant and Bar Napa
610 First St.
Napa, CA 94559
Investigation findings: An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division found the restaurant allowed minor employees as young as 14-years-old to work outside of permitted hours during school days and operate hazardous equipment, in violation of the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Investigators also found the restaurant failed to provide a nursing employee with the proper space and time to express breast milk during their workday. The employer also harassed and retaliated against the employee by reducing her work schedule and earning potential.
Wages Recovered: $3,300 in lost opportunity wages for the nursing employee
Penalties: $45,570 in civil money penalties for child labor violations
Quote: “The U.S. Department of Labor has a responsibility to enforce the rights of America’s workers. Any employer that refuses to accommodate nursing mothers, disregards the educational opportunities and safety of young workers, and harasses and retaliates against workers exercising their rights will be held accountable for their inexcusable actions,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Donald Hines in Walnut Creek, California. “C Casa Restaurant and Bar Napa’s practices endangered children and raised an unacceptable barrier to equitable workforce participation for women.”
Background: In fiscal year 2024, the division found more than 4,000 children employed in violation of federal law nationwide, and assessed more than $15 million in child labor-related penalties, an 89 percent increase from the previous year.
The department’s YouthRules! initiative promotes positive and safe work experiences for teens by providing information about protections for young workers to youth, parents, employers and educators. Through this initiative, the department and its partners promote developmental work experiences that help prepare young workers to enter the workforce. The division has also published Seven Child Labor Best Practices for Employers to help employers comply with the law.
The Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act extends workers’ rights to receive break time to pump in a private place at work. Under the PUMP Act, most nursing employees have the right to reasonable break time and a private place to express breast milk while at work.
Workers can use the division’s Workers Owed Wages search tool to see if they are owed back wages collected by the division. Employers and workers can contact the Wage and Hour Division for assistance at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE. Workers and employers alike can help ensure hours worked and pay are accurate by downloading the department’s Android and iOS Timesheet App for free in English or Spanish.
