Jon & Kate Plus 8 Plus Child Labor Complaint

The TLC reality-show family is in trouble again, and this time it's not about cheating parents

By Jennifer Cady May 29, 2009 8:13 PMTags
Jon Gosselin, Kate Gosselin, Jon and Kate Plus 8Karen Alquist/TLC

Well, since we're already celebrating functional, loving families this week on E! Online, it's Jon & Kate Plus 8 time.

The TLC reality-show family now has a child labor investigation to add to a scandal list that also includes alleged mistresses and bodyguard romancin', shady family members and cookbook writing.

Christopher Manlove of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry confirms to E! News that they are "currently conducting an investigation."

But, he adds, "an investigation does not imply guilt, and our Bureau of Labor Law Compliance is what's called complaint driven—meaning when they receive a complaint they look into it every time."

Our own Answer B!tch already did some investigating of her own earlier this week, speaking to a lawyer specializing in child labor laws, and he had this to say...

"Chances are, courts would say this doesn't count as labor, because the children are doing things they would be doing whether there was a camera or not," said attorney Paul Moretti.

But while he points out that reality-TV shows don't necessarily fall under the same rules as other productions, he does acknowledge that there is little precedent.

So we'll have to see what the state's Department of Labor can come up with. State guidelines say children are only allowed to work between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., except during the summer. They cannot work more than four hours on a school day and no more than 18 hours a week during the school year. Kids can't go longer than five hours without a break.

For its part, TLC swears everything is kosher:

"TLC fully complies with all applicable laws and regulations. Jon & Kate Plus 8 is no exception. For an extended period of time, we have been engaged in cooperative discussions and supplied all requested information to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor. We will continue to engage the appropriate officials and meet any standards or regulations that are applicable to TLC productions."

They couldn't fit in there, "And remember to tune in this Sunday to watch these kids work!" That would have been wrong.

Additional reporting by Ashley Fultz

_________

Check out the E! News special Jon & Kate: Twisted Fate tonight at 10:30 ET/PT